Paradise Lost
by Why so Sirius1236
Summary: *Alternate Sequel to 'Starless Skies'* "To love, pure and chaste, without the temptation of power shall be your greatest lesson, Princeling. Do not take this lightly, for it is a rare offer for the Norns to give second chances to those already so far in the darkness." Loki/OC Redemption fic completely disregarding what happens in Avengers (Ch 18-20 being reworked. see my profile)
1. Chapter 1

**I own nothing but my OCs and plotline**

* * *

"_I've been believing in something so distant_

_As if I was human…"_

_~ "Lost in Paradise"_

* * *

It was a strange feeling, falling for so long that one could not remember which way was up and which was down, or one's left from their right... If the dark haired man that was plummeting through space had even the slightest idea of who or where he was, he might have looked at the feeling from a scholars perspective. But in those moments, as the solar winds rushed through Loki Laufeyson's raven hair and battered his chiseled facial features, very few things penetrated his thoughts. His eyes were closed, and thick, black lashes splayed over high, pale cheekbones. All he could feel was the wind, the mind-numbing elements taking his energy, draining him in every way. This was what death must have felt like.

For another stretch of indefinable amount of time, Loki fell through these conditions. Death never took him, though many times he wished it would. Even if he survived these conditions and ended up landing in another realm or planet, he would be seen as the failure he was. The lost prince, the evil man that tried to kill his brother. Of course, to Loki, all of his actions had been justified. All he felt- when he felt anything- was hate for Thor.

And then of course, there was her. She shifted in and out of his thoughts when he was conscious enough to comprehend that he had left her. She had been the one good thing that he had left when he let go of the Bifrost. But, as had become a great habit to him lately, his rage at Thor pushed her from his mind. His anger was soon gone as his body fell into an even weaker state. His head was spinning faster than before and he fought to retain the shred of consciousness he still had, clinging to it like life itself. In this situation, that was all he had.

Then he felt it; a sharp tug directly in the center of his chest. It seemed to pull him off course of the endless fall, sending him to the side and jerking his limbs around him in odd fashions like a life size marionette. The tugging in his chest grew more insistent, and he squeezed his eye closed even tighter in an effort to see through his confusion. Again with the tugging, and he heard someone screaming as his speed increased through the endless nothing.

Loki did not ever register that it was his own screams that pierced the pressing darkness.

*o*O*o*

"Not yet, he is not ready for that," a raspy voice reached Loki's ears as he grew aware of his surroundings. He tried to reach out with his magical abilities to detect what was in the room with him, but found himself weak and shaky. Wherever he was was uncomfortably silent without the incessant rush of wind in his ears he had been experiencing. His body was lying flat on something solid and he registered that he was not falling as another voice spoke up.

"Sister, he must be. Odin knows him not to be dead, yet he cannot return to Asgard without payment for his sins." This voice was not as raspy, but it was still not entirely human. At that, Loki opened his eyes slowly, taking in the stars above him. He turned his head to the right to see three… he was unsure of what they were. They had gray, wrinkled skin in some moments, but in others they were young maidens. They shifted from one state to another as they walked gracefully around a giant woven tapestry of sorts, interweaving each strand with care. He watched them, taking in the ways in which they manipulated the complex blanket. At some points, the oldest of the three women would take a finger and rip out a strand, recoloring it with a flick of her wrist before sending it back down into the tapestry. All of his studies should have told him who they were, but in those moments Loki could not muster enough energy to think clearly. He could only watch as the hags went through the material, weaving, unweaving, clipping, and tying.

His surroundings became familiar gradually as he took them in. The place he was in was a perfect circle of grass, nothing more than twenty feet in diameter with a large, stone well in the very center. Loki's head rested near the well and he could sense the closeness of one of the… women? Hags? No… his instincts told him these were more than women. These were of the gods… quite probably above them…

Upon seeing him awake, the oldest one sitting by the well called his name. "Loki, God of Mischief and Lies. Stand."

Loki let out a huff. How dare this hag order him around? But he found himself standing nonetheless, shakily brushing his tattered armor off in an attempt to retain some shred of dignity. But something told him his dignity was far from being important at this time as he turned to look upon the women. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came from his silver tongue as he tried to speak to the women.

The oldest rose abruptly. "You have no power here, God of Lies," she said hoarsely. He could make out the outline of yellowed teeth in the hag's mouth and he tried to suppress a grimace. "You think your silver tongue can work on the keepers of the fate? The Norns?"

Loki closed his mouth, pressing his lips together in a tight line as realization hit him. He had been called before the Norns… what other force could pull him from the depths of space?

"You have brought dishonor on the house of Odin, Loki Laufeyson," the first hag said quietly. She stood from her place at the tapestry, trailing a ball of emerald yarn away from the threadwork. "And you have brought dishonor to yourself." She pulled the strand that stretched from the yarn into the tapestry tight and Loki felt a pain in his heart. That was his life force… the life force of a god. He noticed the different bits of yarn here and there. There was a ruby red one that glowed with the same intensity that his own did and the two were interwoven tightly together until they reached a hole in the cloth. At that point, the emerald green broke away from the red and green pattern, leading up to the ball of yarn that now sat in the first Norn's hand. The red had to be Thor's.

"Now you must learn to love again," the second Norn spoke and Loki realized it was the first voice he had heard. "To forgive, to forget, to heal, to remember… but most of all…"

"You must prove your worthiness to retain your godly powers." The first one finished for the second as the second went to work on a silver string that was as equally intertwined with Loki's as Thor's had been… only this time the silver yarn ended up leaving the tapestry shortly after the emerald, unweaving from another strand that was a dark blue in color that now sat in the hand of the third Norn. Loki did not have the faintest notion of whose that was.

"Your lover has made the same mistake as you, princeling," the oldest Norn spoke and it was a near whisper as the first handed her the silver yarn. "Dark magic is unpredictable and dangerous, yet she searches for you even now, even if she does not realize it." Loki's eyes went wide. Silver eyes flashed in his inner eye as the old hands of the third Norn ran over the silver of the thread. _Anja_.

"Do you think yourself worthy of her?" The second asked as she stretched out a bit more of the emerald yarn and turned a milky set of eyes towards him. Loki closed his eyes, gripping his head in both of his hands as he listened to the second's words.

"She will pay for her indiscretion, just as you will, Princeling," the oldest Norn said swiftly. Her words were dry, unemotional. There was no anger, merely a statement.

The three witches stood before Loki as they released their hold on the tapestry and walked over to him, circling him.

"A young girl fair, whose innocence you took," the first rasped out.

"Shall find refuge in a realm, masquerading as one of the beings you once sought to destroy," the second said quietly.

"Alone and powerless, a mortal life span you shall serve," the first spoke again.

"Lest you find her, whose memories of love are lost," the second rasped as the three laid a hand on his shoulder.

The third Norn spoke last. "To love, pure and chaste, without the temptation of power shall be your greatest lesson, Princeling. Do not take this lightly, for it is a rare offer for the Fates to give second chances to those already so far in the darkness." Loki felt the Fates release him and he stumbled backwards, gasping for breath as a darkening power shot through his system. No… it was not a dark power, merely the absence of his own sorcerer capabilities. He watched as his own, emerald green thread lost its glow and turned to the same texture as that of the mortals. "Seek this Anja out. Learn to love her. Be warned, she shall not know you, she shall have a whole new life apart from you, woven by our own hand. Her heart shall remain the same. It is your task, Princeling, to find her and relearn who you once were. She is injured, hurting and mourning. This is why she turned to your dark magic, and this is why you must find her and heal her. And by doing so… you heal yourself." The old Norn placed a shriveled hand over Loki's heart. Loki felt the air leaving his lungs. The Norns had plucked him out of space, saved him from death, for this? To humor them in their little idea of a game?

"Should you succeed and prove yourself worthy, you will be allowed to return to your home realm. Both of your powers shall be restored. But she must see you, love you, forgive you, and remember you." The second Norn was speaking and Loki cursed the ambiguity of these figures.

"Either way, Princeling, we shall not meet again in person." The third Norn spoke quietly now. As he felt the oldest Norn's hand push harder against his chest, he felt the solid ground slipping away once more and darkness took him. Only this time, Loki knew exactly where he would land.

* * *

**Alrightie then, that's the prologue for this alternate sequel, guys! It felt really spaced out as I wrote it, but I can assure you things will solidify the more we move along. I want to hear some theories on who the blue string belonged to though ;)**

**With all the little plans I have in my head for this I think it will be very much like the first story I wrote for these two. I really enjoy the more emotional side of Loki rather than the 'bag of cat brains' Loki. **

**Review to let me know what you think?**

**~Sirius **


	2. Chapter 2

"…_and I've been denying this feeling of hopelessness in me, in me."_

_~ 'Lost in Paradise'_

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The bar was filled to the brim with people. A band played in the far corner, blaring loud guitar music and the incessant thump of the drums resonated off of the walls of the dimly lit room. Within the center of the room, a rectangular bar sat, crowded with people tired of dancing to the band's hard rock. At the farthest corner of the bar, a man sat alone, arms crossed and quite desolate looking as he cupped a drink in one hand and watched the people come and go around him.

Raven hair fell to the collar of his dress shirt; his alabaster forearms were exposed to the elbows where he had long ago rolled up the tiresome Midgardian wear. On his right wrist, an emerald green bit of yarn was secured around his arm. Loki looked around, emerald eyes ever searching in the sea of mortals for a pair of silver eyes or a head of dark curls…

"Can I get you something else?" a barmaid came up to him, smiling coyly at the dark stranger. She propped an elbow on her side of the bar, her lowcut shirt swooping exceedingly low over her chest.

Loki looked in her direction, looking at her, but not seeing her. She had blonde hair. That wasn't what he needed. "No," he replied shortly. He went to pull a bill from his pocket before handing it over to the waitress to pay for his drink.

It had been three months since he had arrived in Midgard; three, excruciatingly dull months. The Norns had seen fit to leave Loki with at least some means on this realm. After he had left the Norns, he had woken up in a small flat in a small town in the Midgardian continent of North America. The emerald string around his wrist had been there when he awoke, a reminder of his station beneath the Norns and of his task. The dull, dark bit of string also reminded him of his own newly gained mortality. The months had been filled with bitterness as he watched for his lover in this realm. He wondered if Anja would ever show her face… or if this was a cruel trick of the Fates. He would not put it past them.

"You seem to come here alone a lot," the waitress fished as she pulled a glass from beneath the bar for another customer. "Got no one to go home to or something?" She filled the glass from one of the taps before handing it across the bar to a red-headed woman.

Loki cut his eyes at her, hands leaving the bar to rest on his knees as he sat up straighter… and farther away from the mortal woman as he leaned back on the stool. "You could say that," he said quickly.

The waitress slung a dish towel over her shoulder as she turned back to him. "Would you like to get a drink sometime, then?" she asked casually, wiping her hands on her apron.

Loki looked at her for a full second before leaning back into the bar. "Vodka. Straight up." He sounded terribly mortal, but he supposed that was just an effect of living on Midgard in such a state. He hated it here. He was powerless, but he thanked the Norns that he still had use of his silver tongue. This poor woman just seemed to bear the brunt of his irritation tonight.

The waitress looked at him for a moment, clearly taking the hint as she turned with a huff to reach for a shot glass. She handed him the shot quickly before snapping her head around and walking away. Loki suppressed a smirk as he raised the glass to his mouth. He threw his head back as he downed the Midgardian liquid. It burned on its way down, but that did not bother him anymore. He sat the paper money on the bar as he swung his long legs around on the stool and stood up swiftly, taking in his surroundings. The dim lighting made it increasingly hard to see who was around him, especially with his severely limited mortal vision and hearing.

People were everywhere and Loki slipped between the groups of people with a casual grace as he made his way towards the door. Surely Anja would never lower herself to a place such as this, even if she was a mortal. He had been a fool to look for her here. He saw a head of bright red hair cross his path again and for a reason he could not explain the figure caught his attention. It was not in a sexual way, just a curious interest in the way the figure moved. The woman had been just next to him at the bar… and she reeked of magic.

But then, just as she had appeared, she had gone back off into the crowd, disappearing in the sea of people. With an irritated huff, Loki blamed the drinks he had had and kept moving.

*o*O*o*

"Grace, if you don't relax soon I think I shall go insane!" The party was getting rougher in the crowded bar as the red-headed woman slid into a booth next to her dark-headed companion. She set the drink in her hand by the woman at the table. "You'll age prematurely if you don't relax, hun." The red-head spoke with a fluid accent to her companion that resembled the Scottish brogue her hair made everyone think of.

Grace tossed her long dark curls aside as she eyed her friend, silver eyes flashing dangerously. "Eira, I told you I did not wish to come tonight. You know how Aric gets when I leave him for too long." She eyed the rather ominous looking mug of beer with a weary glance before sliding it back over to the red-head.

"Nonsense. Jim told you he'd watch him, didn't he?" Eira asked as she crossed her arms and rested them on the table.

Grace returned Eira's gaze before she went for the glass of beer. "I just worry about him, Eir. He's so young." Grace looked out over the crowded bar, clearly unimpressed with the way that the other people here were behaving. She would rather be at home with her son than here right now. "And I thought you said you had cultural plans for this evening."

Eira shrugged, sending her curly red mane over her shoulders. "Theater was sold out."

"Ah." Grace clutched her bag closer as a group of people walked by, wincing as she noticed that the scar on her left arm was showing again. She tugged insistently at the green material of her sleeve in an attempt to cover the mark. She was not vain, but it often led to awkward questions when someone had the nerve to ask her about it. Even she could not remember where it had come from, one of the many strange things about her life. She swirled the tip of her finger around the lip of the beer glass that she had taken back from Eira, listening to the ever so slight whistling her finger moving against the glass provided. It steadied her as she watched the bar.

She looked down at the necklace she wore and fingered the arrowhead pendant and golden feather that never left her person. The piece of jewelry in itself was a mystery to her. She had suffered a head injury- or so she had been told- a while back, shortly after giving birth to her three-month old son, Aric. He was at home at the moment, being babysat by her boyfriend Jim while Eira tried to get her back out in the real world. Amnesia had proven to be Grace's own worst enemy and she had finally gotten back into the swing of things. Her boyfriend had been nothing but supportive since she had started dating him a month ago, but she knew he was not Aric's father... and that burned him a bit. This bit of information, like so many other things, left blatant holes in her life's memories.

Now here she was, sitting at a bar as she watched people make fools of themselves. This was not how Grace wanted to spend her evenings. Books were far better company than drunk people.

She endured the bar for another half hour before she put her foot down as her friend came back up to the table. "Alright, Eir, I'm leaving now. Are you coming?" Eira had retreated from the dance floor, looking rather… well, rather drunk. Grace rolled her eyes as she took her friend by the hand. "I'm driving," was all the brunette said to her shorter friend.

*o*O*o*

It had taken Loki a considerable amount of time to clear the bar and now he found himself returning to it. The restaurant below the bar was empty, void of anyone but a waiter cleaning tables in the back.

Loki appeared to have left his wallet, and he inwardly cursed his clumsy mortal hands. This life was no hell. It was purgatory. The stairs leading up to the bar were old and wooden. He cringed as they creaked under his footsteps. Before he could get to the door, however, two women came stumbling through, one obviously supporting the other. He saw the familiar mane of red hair he had noticed on the dance floor earlier, but this time the magic that was still rolling off of her did not capture his attention. The silver eyes that were looking back at him, did.

Anja seemed to look at him for a moment, but as he should of known she would not recognize him. He tried to open his mouth to speak, but she did not give him the chance. "Excuse us, sir, my friend has had a bit too much to…" She trailed off when she noticed he was still looking at her intently. Anja… His Anja, was right in front of him. His eyes lighted on the arrowhead resting over the green material of her dress shirt and his heart quickened in pace. She cut her eyes to her companion as the redhead kept moving down the stairs before walking hurriedly past Loki with a light 'excuse us.'

Loki did not know what to do. He did not know what he _could_ do. He caught her scent as she walked down the stairs, lavender and the unmistakable warmth he had always loved about her. Yet here he stood, just watching as the love of his life walked away. He shifted his feet uncomfortably, deliberating whether or not to follow the two women. Undoubtedly it would only frighten them, and having Anja afraid of him was the last thing he wanted. Something nudged the toe of his shoe as he went to go back upstairs and retrieve his wallet. He looked down to see a small green purse that had not been there before the two women had passed.

With trembling hands, Loki bent down to pick up the satin bag, opening it. What he found made his heart skip a beat. With a shaky hand, he clutched the I.D. card that held the perfect photograph of his Anja on its front. She must have dropped her bag, silly girl.

What it said confused him slightly. Apparently her name was Grace… He frowned slightly as he took her picture in. No, this was Anja. Then the writing at the top of the card caught his attention. He allowed himself a faint smile as he took it in. He had discovered her employee I.D.

_Grace Donovan _

_City Library Employee _

Quickly, Loki pocketed the card, hanging onto the bag as well. He knew where he was going in the morning. His Skylark needed her belongings and who was he to keep them from her?

* * *

**AN: The translation of Anja means Grace or Gracious, just throwing that out there. **

**Also, more to come on Anja's story next chapter. This will be a very spaced out story, but i promise by the time you reach the end of the journey, all will be revealed :) **

**Review? **

**~Sirius **


	3. Chapter 3

"_I have nothing left…"_

_~ 'Lost in Paradise'_

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Grace woke up abruptly to her alarm clock and the smell of coffee. She did not hear Aric's cries like she normally did and in a sweeping motion she was on her feet and moving through her house. It was a simple place, one-story, two bedrooms, and out in one of the smaller neighborhoods near the slightly larger city. Aric's crib was empty and she realized that Jim must have stayed the night. She smiled slightly to herself as she wrapped a robe around her tall frame and padded down the hall to the kitchen… where she could make out the unmistakable sound of her baby's cooing in Jim's arms.

She smiled a bit at her boyfriend. He was tall, tan, and had a killer smile that could have sold any car at the dealership he worked at. She counted herself very lucky to have him, especially when he was this willing to help her out with Aric. She watched the two from the doorway, unable to shake the feeling that this wasn't right, that this wasn't the person that needed to be with her son in such a manner. As much as she cared for Jim, something failed to touch her when he looked through his golden blonde bangs at her and his deep brown eyes held hers. Even his kiss was not as deep as what she wanted. Something was missing in her life. That was all there was to it.

He turned to her with a grin on his face before kissing her on the cheek and handing aric off to her.

"Thought you could use a rest this morning before you went to work," he said casually as she tucked Aric into her shoulder. The child was three-months old by now, just starting to hold his head up. She felt his dark head trying to do so at that very moment, often times thudding into her shoulder gently as he worked the muscles in his neck. He let out a little coo and Grace shifted his weight to higher on her shoulder so he could see over the top of it. She couldn't see her son's face, but she knew eyes as green as emeralds were darting about as he took everything around him in. Jim went to pour a cup of coffee for Grace.

She shook her head. "Not today, sweetheart," she said quickly. "I'm running late as it is." She looked down at her pajamas and, with a sigh, she went to get herself and Aric ready for the day.

*o*O*o*

After Grace dropped Aric off at his daycare, she went straight to her job at the city library. The library was an old building, constructed mainly of old bricks and wooden shutters on the countless windows. A tall staircase led up to the front doors.

She got out of her car, a white, used sedan, and slung her bag over her shoulder. She had realized last night after dropping Eira off at the red-head's apartment that she had misplaced her employee I.D. and cringed inwardly at the thought of what it would take to replace it. Her boss tended to frown upon frivolous spending. But then again, the library was already in dire straights just maintaining the grounds and the old foundations of the building. Grace had been exceedingly lucky to even apply for a job here.

Head held high, Grace walked slowly up the stairs, taking in a breath of morning air before she opened the door. She was completely unaware of an entirely new pair of emerald green eyes trained on her back as she disappeared inside the building.

*o*O*o*

Loki watched from a bench on the sidewalk that was just outside the city library. How had he not thought to come here in the first place? Of course Anja would be drawn to a place such as this. Despite the fact that the library was on Midgard, he could not help but appreciate the old architecture. This building probably dated back a hundred years, merely a hiccup in his millennia of life, but impressive by mortal standards.

With a roll of his eyes at his thoughts, Loki stood up gracefully before walking up to the foot of the stairs. Anja's green bag was clutched in his left hand, her I.D. in the other as he took in the white bricks of the building. This was it. It had taken him three months to find her and now he had her in his sights. The image of her Midgardian form, dressed in close fitting jeans and a green shirt had him on edge at that very moment. He did not think he could bear another minute without her… or that body of hers…

As that thought crossed his mind, the string on his wrist sent a wave of white hot heat into the area of his flesh that it touched. He winced, letting out a gasp as he looked down at the string. Those damn Norns. If he hadn't known better, he would swear they were laughing at him at that very moment. Surely this was pathetic to them… and he supposed that 'lustful thought' was probably enough for them to send a warning his way.

_"To love, pure and chaste, without the temptation of power will be your greatest lesson…"_

The hags' words went through his head as he stayed where he was on the sidewalk. How could those witches possibly expect him not to think of his betrothed in such a way? Was that not expected?

*o*O*o*

Grace sat down at the front desk shortly after clocking in in the break room. Several people were already in the library and she settled in for what was sure to be a busy day. From her palce at her desk, she could see everything from the marble tiled floors of the entrance to the very back of the building when she turned around. That was where the children's books were kept and she found herself spacing out and thinking of the day that her son could take as much joy as she did in the worlds that books provided. Witha huff, she turned around to work on a file on her computer.

"Excuse me," a cool voice reached her ears and she looked up from her computer at the sound of it. Was that a chill she felt going down her spine at the sound of this voice? She had never experienced this feeling as long as she could remember… and it was not entirely unpleasant.

"Yes? How can I help you?" Her voice nearly caught in her throat when she looked into eyes so green she had to blink to make sure she wasn't imagining them... They made her think immediately of Aric. A better study of the face that accompanied the characteristics she had picked up on revealed the tall pale man she had run into at the bar last night. She felt her breath catch in her throat. She hadn't noticed last night, but he was… gorgeous. Not how her Jim was gorgeous, but more of a cold and austere attractiveness. The man looked at her intently, just as he had the night before. Then he held a green handbag up and she recognized it to be the one she had lost. She must have dropped it the night before when she ran into him. He skidded her employee I.D. across the desk to her.

"I believe this is yours, My Lad- Miss Donovan."

His voice! Dear God, his voice was like velvet , seductive, but… dangerous as well. She took both of what he had handed to her quickly. "Thank you," she stammered as she pocketed the card and gave him a small smile. She felt the rush of blood spread to her cheeks and she thanked goodness that she had tan skin to hide the evidence of her embarrassment.

He cocked his head to the left, studying her and she felt very strange. Under his gaze, she felt… almost cold, like any moment she could freeze solid and break into a million tiny pieces. What was even stranger was the vague feeling of… familiarity.

"The pleasure was mine," he said with a wry smile. Their eyes stayed on eachother's for a while, Grace's mainly because she did not know what else to do. She felt like a bird under the predatorial gaze of a snake. Then he broke eye contact with her, head looking around at the library's shelves. His gaze rested on a flight of stairs that led up to the resource section of the library. "May I enquire as to what is up there?" He only seemed vaguely interested in his question, more interested in a chance to ask her something.

Grace had to think for a moment to get the words to come. "That's the resource floor," she said quickly. Her words felt like glue in her mouth. "It has history, encyclopedias, dictionaries, and scientific books to name a few. There really are quite some interesting reads."

When she answered him, he nodded slightly. She could see a muscle in his jaw clench as he took in the wooden staircase. "Thank you," he said with a slight bow of his head. Grace blushed even further when he merely stood in front of her awkwardly. Why didn't he just get on with his day? "Science, you say?" She nodded. "I find that topic highly interesting. Perhaps there are books covering the molecular structures of the elements?"

Grace scrunched her eyebrows, nodding. "And many more topics," she said as she tapped her pen on the desk. He nodded again, hands behind his back. Okay, this was getting too strange. Grace rose from her seat, pretending she was needed in the back store room.

"The lady up there can help you if you need help with anything in particular."

The pale man turned his green gaze back to her, clearly thinking at top speed. "Yes, thank you. I shall be returning very soon." He looked at her once more, as if seeing her for the first time. Before Grace knew it, the pale man had turned on his heel and left the library, the double doors of the exit swinging in his wake.

* * *

**And so they finally meet! I hope that was enough to satisfy yall's Loja feels for now. I can't wait to really get into their interactions, but it has to build. :D **

**Review?**

**~Sirius **


	4. Chapter 4

"_All the promises I made_

_Just to let you down_

_You believed in me, but I'm broken"_

* * *

The day came and went, but Grace found herself thinking about the morning's occurrences too much to her liking. Whenever the green-eyed stranger would interrupt her thoughts, she would turn to the small picture she had of her son that sat next to her computer. The resemblance in the two's eye color was uncanny… and the dark hair…

That had been one thing Grace had noticed about the pale man. His hair had been dark as night and brushed the back of his collar. She had not seen anyone wear such a hairstyle save for perhaps on a television program taking place in the medieval era. Yet deep down, something about it actually felt... normal. She shook her head quickly, pushing him from her thoughts. She had been fortunate he had found her bag on those stairs. Not just any stranger would have the decency to pick it up for her. His eyes, staring intently back at her, came back into her mind's eye. It took her another whole minute to realize that she had barely gotten any work done on her computer. With a sigh, she turned her long fingers back to the keyboard, counting down the hours until she could go back home to her family.

It was best to put the encounter out of her mind. He had been a simple stranger coming to give her something she had lost. Nothing registered in her mind that she had lost so much more… so much more that he could give back to her.

*o*O*o*

Loki paced back and forth in his small apartment, no light but the moon seeping into the dull place. He was in his bedroom, a rather simple place compared to what he was used to in Asgard. Gods, his quarters in Asgard could have swallowed this rat hole tenfold.

His mind was reeling with what he had seen that day. Anja… Anja… Her name ran through his thoughts like a mantra as he thought of those silver eyes. She had not recognized him at all yet again though and he quickly felt the hopelessness of his situation come crashing into his spirits. His anger and irritation at his circumstances came back.

It was Thor's fault that he was stuck here on earth. Thor had been the one to ruin all of his plans, hadn't he? Yet the one that stopped him from accomplishing anything that would prove himself worthy in the eyes of Odin still sat at Odin's right hand. With a burst of irritation, Loki let a fist fly into the sheet rock of his bedroom… and he let out a gasp of pain as he felt something pop in his hand.

Damn this mortal body! He had forgotten that he was just as fragile as the beings he had once thought himself above… still thought himself above. Through the pain that danced across his knuckles, Loki felt the white hot flash he had felt earlier that day emit from the string on his wrist, a punishment from the Norns for his arrogant thoughts.

How could they expect to change him? He was who he was. Loki, god of mischief and lies. Anja had seen fit to love him despite that, hadn't she? She didn't remember much of him at all anymore, he supposed.

He thought about the girl he had seen in the library. She had seemed so much smaller than she had been in Asgard. Her silver eyes had looked back at him, wide as saucers as his mind had raced through what he could say, what he could do to talk to her. But to his dismay he found himself in the same dilemma he had been in when he first saw her as a teenager in the gardens. He had been able to keep her near him with the promise of new magic in those earlier times. Now she was a mortal librarian that had no reason to talk to him.

But he would find a reason. He was a patient man, after all.

*o*O*o*

"Honey?"

Grace looked up from her plate at dinner. Aric was in his play pen a few feet from the table, lying on his back and little legs moving at a fast pace as if he was running. Grace set her fork down and finished chewing the piece of pork she had popped in her mouth. "Yeah?"

Jim came around the corner of her kitchen, his own plate in hand as he walked towards her. "Was there something you wanted to do for your birthday next week?"

Grace tried very hard not to roll her silver eyes. She could not remember her other birthdays and saw very little reason to celebrate one that her boyfriend had had to remind her about. "I think I have more pressing things to keep my mind on right now," she said carefully. Jim looked at her for a moment, an incredulous look crossing his brown eyes.

"Oh, come on."

Grace shook her head. "It is not of importance to me," she said evenly.

"Well, you may change your mind." Jim's hand came down to rest lightly on the table, his gaze fully on her. "Why do you talk like that sometimes?" he asked carefully after another minute.

Grace looked up at him again, wiping her mouth before answering. "What?"

"You talk so proper, like you're some grammar freak. Especially about something like a birthday dinner." Grace met his gaze, taking him in. She did not see anything wrong with how she spoke.

"I don't know, Jim," she said with a sigh. "It's just the way I am." She looked over at Aric for a moment before going back to her food.

Jim pursed his lips, looking at her as she went back to her food. She could tell he was trying to start a conversation with her, but truthfully she did not feel like talking. He had surprised her with dinner that night when she and Aric had finally made it home, and she hadn't had the heart to refuse him. He was like a puppy dog, a golden retriever. "How was work today?"

Emerald eyes flashed through Grace's head as she looked back up at her boyfriend. She blinked to clear her head and formulated her words carefully. "Oh, the usual. We are working on reworking the system upstairs in the reference library to make it a bit easier for people to get their hands on the information that we have, but other than that…" She shrugged as she took a sip of milk.

Jim nodded as he put a fork-full of pork in his mouth. "Sounds rather tedious."

"It is not all bad. I do enjoy my books." She had cleared her plate at that point, finishing up the food he had prepared. It really had been quite good.

*o*O*o*

The evening with Jim passed quickly. Grace was able to put Aric down at a reasonable hour and she came back out to Jim sitting on the front porch. From here, the city lights did not cloud out the stars and Grace could see every speck of starlight in the inky expanse of the night sky. The moon was high in the sky too.

"It's a nice night, isn't it?" Grace said quietly. The stars had always made her breathless. For a reason she could not place, being able to see the stars made her feel more at home. They were reminders of the wonders that were still out in the universe.

Jim shrugged. "I guess." He took her hand as she sat down on the outdoor couch next to him. She was just next to Aric's window and she could hear him if he woke up since she had it cracked. The wicker of the seat stuck to her bare legs, snagging a bit of the denim shorts she had on. "I just know you like it." She felt him take her hand and she kept her eyes on the sky. It was nights like these that made her feel like she was missing something entirely… She felt cheated that she could not remember anything about her life before the injury. She did not even remember holding Aric for the first time… or the first time Jim had taken her out on a date. For some reason, when she looked up at the stars, all she could see were emerald eyes tonight.

"Grace?" Jim's voice penetrated her thoughts and she turned her gaze back to him. "You okay?"

"I am." That was all she could say, all she could force her mind to think of as a response. It could not have been farther from the truth. "I am just not feeling myself tonight."

Jim gave her hand a squeeze before he turned back to the sky. A few minutes later he had brushed her long hair over her shoulder… and leaned in to kiss her cheek. She looked back at him, smiling sadly. This could not have felt more wrong to her. This man… Jim, was so sweet. But his kiss did nothing for her. She felt even worse when he planted a kiss on her lips, holding his lips on hers and cupping her face in his hands.

Grace had her eyes closed, waiting on something, anything, to spark within her. But to her dismay, no true desire came through. "Can I spend the night?" he asked breathlessly as he kissed her once more, a quick peck on her lips.

Grace inhaled, pulling away from him as she looked down. "Not tonight, Jim." He looked slightly hurt and she felt she needed a viable excuse. "My head is hurting me rather badly."

Jim let out a slight huff as he got up, helping her to her feet. They had slept together only once since she had known him. It had not been unpleasant, in fact she had enjoyed the night, but tonight felt wrong. For a reason she could not place she felt like she was doing someone wrong if she gave herself to Jim tonight.

He nodded finally as he grabbed his keys from his pocket. "I'll call you tomorrow then," he said as he pecked her on her cheek once more. He hopped down off the porch and she followed him to his car, watching him leave. He cranked up his car and the headlights hit her dead in the face, blinding her to the world momentarily. She waved blindly, unsure if she was waving in the right direction or not through the glare of his headlights. Somehow, the feeling was a perfect metaphor for the state of her life right then.

She stood in her driveway for a while after Jim drove off. It took her a good five minutes of staring blankly across the street before raindrops started to fall in a light drizzle over the expanse of her lawn. It took her another half second after that to realize that a single tear had streamed down her cheek.

*o*O*o*

"Take these on upstairs for me, Grace." Grace's boss, Elena, had plopped a stack of heavy encyclopedias down on her desk in the break room. Grace looked at them for a second as she stood up, taking in the leather binding. They were beautiful books to say the least. "They were donated last night."

It had been two weeks since Grace had encountered the green eyed man. Since then, he had taken to walking into the library every morning, making sure to smile warmly at her. It had been a strange feeling, given his cold disposition. He would spend hours up there. Doing what? She could only guess. All she knew was that since he had showed up in her life, she had been feeling empty around Jim a lot more lately… and more defensive of Aric around strangers. Even Eira had picked up on Grace's shift in mood.

Grace nodded, cringing at the thought of going up there when the pale man was up there. She didn't even know his name and she was probably over reacting, but the way he looked at her… It was unnerving, like he knew all about her. She wondered vaguely if this was what it felt like to have a stalker, then pushed that from her mind. This man was not a stalker. She was being pretentious to even think that. She slipped her hair into a low ponytail as she scooped the encyclopedias into her arms and staggered towards the staircase.

The wooden staircase groaned under her feet and the added weight of the books she was carrying. By the time she had reached the top of the staircase she was out of breath and she could feel a bit of sweat clinging to her back beneath her shirt. Her gaze fell on the bookshelf that the encyclopedias needed to go on… and she suppressed a groan when she realized that the space for them was at the very top.

With a huff, she milled in and out of the people that were there, dodging a rather slow moving old lady and walker before she reached her destination. She was quite alone in the aisle and she pulled a stool up with her foot so she could get the heavy books on the top shelf without difficulty. She didn't mind. She liked the feel of weight in her arms. It made her feel like she was accomplishing something.

She got the books on top of the shelf with no problem. It was the fact that the two on the very top slipped from the stack and landed on the opposite side of the book shelf that made her cringe. The cringe turned to total dismay when she heard a small curse come from the other side of the shelves.

"Damn." She knew that voice… It was like velvet, and she hadn't heard it in two weeks. Of all the rotten luck!

She rushed around to the other aisle to see the tall pale man clutching his head. His dark hair was slightly out of kilter and it a strand was out of its slicked back position and hanging limply over his forehead. "I am so sorry, sir!"

*o*O*o*

Loki's emerald gaze snapped up at the sound of Anja's voice. She was standing in the asile in front of him, a worried expression knitting her eyebrows together. "I am so sorry, sir. I lost my grip and…"

The scowl that he had put on for whatever dumb bloke had injured him in such a way went away at the sight of her. "It is… alright. No harm done." He stood up straight as he looked at her… and staggered a little bit. Curse this mortal body! His true form could have sustained much more than a simple book landing on his head. This was ridiculous!

Her hand… her actual hand went out to catch him, wrapping around his arm to steady him. "No. No you are not," she said softly. Her grip was gentle, but firm, like being submerged in water. He remembered that feeling. She looked up at his forehead, the part that had borne the brunt of her mistake.

She did not touch the goose egg that was no doubt forming. "Allow me to get you some ice for that, Mr…"

"Loki, call me Loki," he said as he tried to suppress the elation that was piercing through the fog his injury had put him in.

Her silver eyes flashed up to his briefly, no doubt wondering about the uncommon name. "Alright, Loki."

The sound fo his name rolling off of her tongue made hope rekindle in Loki as she helped him down the staircase.

* * *

**Ok, so that was that. I hate to say this, guys, but I am going out of town for another week on saturday. I will have no internet access (for real this time) and so updates will not be up for a week. I am so sorry! Know that i will still be thinkinga nd plotting ways for this and my other story to work out. :) **

**Review? **

**~Sirius **


	5. Chapter 5

"_I have nothing left_

_And all I feel is this cruel wanting."_

* * *

By the time Grace had made it down the stairs with Loki, a sizable lump had formed over the spot on his forehead over his right eye. The break room was just down the hall from the old wooden staircase and without so much as a second thought, she had turned to direct the injured man to it.

She let out a sigh of relief to find the break room empty when they made it to the small room. Her heels clicked on the tiled floors as the two made their way to one of the two folding tables that sat along the middle of the room. A refrigerator was in the far left corner and once Loki was seated in one of the chairs, she had grabbed a clean dish towel to wrap some ice in. The whole time her back was to the strange man, she could feel his gaze boring into her.

Ice in hand, she turned back to him, giving him an apologetic smile as she handed the ice over. He looked at it for a few seconds before looking back up to her. Those emerald eyes were still as brilliant as she remembered them.

"Um…" she spoke after a minute of him holding the ice and looking at her. "It will only work if you put it on the spot you got hurt at, Sir," she said quietly. Dear God, had she given him a concussion?!

"Oh," he said finally as he looked at the ice then back up to her again, but he made no move to place it on his head. With a small sigh, she shyly took the ice and laid it against his forehead. His hand went up to hold it where she had placed the cold pack, emerald eyes closing as the cool eased the pain in his head. Grace let out a little gasp when his fingertips brushed hers… And the emerald orbs shot open to look back at her.

A current had shot through her at that point, but it wasn't one of a physical nature. Instead, the faintest murmuring of familiarity danced across her memory… and was gone in a heartbeat. "What?" Loki's voice reached her ears before she realized she had been staring at him just as he had her.

*o*O*o*

Her eyes darted away quickly as she went to sit across the table from him, clearing her head in the process. "Nothing," she replied quickly. "I am really sorry about your head."

Loki let out the breath he had been holding in. Something had shot through that silver gaze of hers when their hands had touched, he had felt it. "Do not trouble yourself," he said quickly. "I bounce back rather quickly." _Or I once did… _

He watched as Anja's – or Grace's- hands reached up to rest on the table between them. Her silver eyes were slightly clouded, but they still had a sharpness in them that he remembered. He could only hope that she would remember too. The clock on the far wall ticked the time away. Tick, tick, tick…

"So, are you working on a thesis?" she asked in an attempt to break the awkward silence. He seemed to be old enough to be completing a masters or something.

Loki furrowed his swollen brow under the ice. "Pardon?"

"A research paper. It just… you seem to come here often."

Loki let out a little laugh. "No, Miss Donovan, I just enjoy this place and the knowledge it provides me with."

He watched Grace's own brow furrow at that, enjoying the fact that he had confused her slightly. Maybe it would get her thinking.

"Well, I am glad it can be of service to you, Sir," her voice was slightly thrown, smaller as she thought through his words. "We work hard to keep it in order."

Loki nodded. "I can see that, My Dear. Are encyclopedias the only thing that fall from seemingly nowhere around here?"

Grace's eyes seemed to flash when he addressed her in such a way, but she did not say anything about it. She gave him a small smile. "Not to my knowledge," she said quietly. She bit her lower lip, a characteristic she had always possessed back in Asgard as she tore her gaze from his.

He winced a bit and she noticed the grimace that seemed to form around his seemingly flawless lips as the pain shot through his head. She felt extremely guilty about what she had done. "I would take some Advil when you get home for that," she said as she made to get up. Loki's eyes shot up to look at hers.

"Tell me, Miss Donovan," he said in an effort to stop her. She couldn't leave him just like that. He might not get a chance to speak with her ever again. "How long have you worked here?"

She was biting her lower lip again as she turned around to him, easing back into the chair as she took the bait. "Three months," she said quietly. A cloud had passed over her eyes as she seemed to think about it.

"And before, what did you do before?" He needed to know how much she knew, what falsehood the Norns had filled her head with about her life. He leaned into the table, discarding the icy cloth onto the table as he peered intently back at her.

She furrowed her brow again, obviously wondering why he was asking her this. "I… I fear I do not know," she said quietly. Loki's heart sped up. He opened his mouth to say more, but was cut off by another presence in the room.

"Grace?" the sound of the head librarian sounded from the doorway as Grace turned her head around to look at the tall blonde woman. "Books do not sort themselves. You will have to have lunch with your boyfriend some other time."

Boyfriend? Grace sat back from the table, suddenly realizing that she had been leaning into the table to meet Loki's gaze. Their hands had grown closer together as they spoke, an obvious sign of affection… But she hardly knew him! She had just hit him over the head with an encyclopedia for heaven's sake! She got up abruptly, shooting him a glance as she answered her boss.

"Yes, Miss Elena," she said calmly. "I was just tending to some first aid. Mr… Erm…"

"Nicholls," Loki spoke up to save Grace's floundering. He did not dare use his real name. _Laufeyson, Odinson? He was not sure anymore anyway. _

"Yes, Mr. Nicholls had a run in with an encyclopedia. I wanted to ensure that he was alright."

The librarian glanced between the two before looking back at Grace. "Alright, well, he seems to be fine, Grace. You can go back to work."

Grace nodded to the blonde woman before she turned to Loki, shifted her weight slightly as if in hesitation, and left the room entirely, following her boss. Loki waited until the two's footsteps subsided completely before he stood up, ignoring the dizziness that threatened to consume him. He knew he had not imagined anything of what Anja had gone through. She had felt something when their hands had touched accidentally. Perhaps it was a flaw in the Norn's magic?

One thing he knew for sure, he was about to get much closer to Grace Donovan.

*o*O*o*

Aric woke Grace up three times that night, crying at the top of his lungs. He had never acted in such a way beforehand and she wondered just what had gotten into him. He had always been a quiet baby, docile even when he was ill tempered.

"Shh, Aric, Baby, mother's here. Mother's here," she cooed to him as she bounced with him lightly on her shoulder. She patted his back, kissing his little head in an effort to calm him down. Finally, his cries subsided and she heard soft coos coming from his little mouth as he bit into the fabric of her T-shirt with his gums.

She could not help but wish that she had someone here with her to help with Aric. Jim had offered his help countless times, but she had almost always turned him down. Again, she felt the realization that she needed something more for Aric hit her and it left her breathless. Why could she not remember who the father was! Surely, if he had been important, he would have stayed with her though… Perhaps it was time to accept Jim as Aric's father. But emerald eyes haunted her when she thought of such a thing and she found herself unable to do so.

Aric's emerald green eyes closed after another few minutes as Grace put him down. His alabaster baby legs twitched slightly as he relaxed into the mattress of the crib, but he made no other movement.

With a sigh, Grace ran her fingers through her long curls and made her way back down the hall to her own room. She was dressed in her underwear and a T-shirt, nothing more. Her queen sized bed sat in the center of the room, and to the left she had her own bathroom. She went in and clicked on the lights. Her eyes adjusted to the change slowly as she took in her own reflection.

It was a tired one and she placed her hands to her cheeks as she met her own silver gaze in the mirror. Something was happening to her but she was not sure what it was. Somehow the name 'Grace' seemed to be unfitting for her all of the sudden. Her felt like it didn't fit… but when she looked at herself in the mirror, she looked as normal as ever. What was happening?

She could hear Aric's cries resonate down the hall from his room and she walked back to her son with a sigh. Emerald eyes were back in her mind as she went to her little son. Whose eyes they were, she was unsure of.

*o*O*o*

"Holy shit, Grace, you look awful," Eira's voice was the first thing she heard as her friend slipped into the car. "What did you and Jim _do_ last night?"

Grace felt her cheeks flush. "Absolutely nothing, Eir," Grace said. "He did not even come over. Aric decided to develop some crying habits."

Eira nodded understandingly. "You already dropped him off at daycare?"

Grace had opened her mouth in a large yawn as her friend asked her that last question and she settled for nodding in response. She had dropped her son off extra early this morning so she could pick Eira up without any time crunching. Eira's car was in the shop having its oil changed and the red-head needed a ride to work.

"But I need to get to work kind of early. I sort of… fell behind on the sorting system yesterday." She grimaced as she thought of the embarrassing scene her boss had walked in on. She had not corrected the woman on the fact that Loki was not her boyfriend, but she had not realized that til after.

"No problem, thanks for helping me out. My boss told me if I'm late again that he'll have my head." Eira rolled her eyes, but Grace could tell that she was serious. Eira had a habit of showing up late to her multiple jobs. She worked as a music teacher on the weekdays, but on weekends she could be found bar tending in any of the bars downtown. Grace had stopped trying to keep count of the bars that Eira worked at. Since it was a weekday, Grace would be dropping Eira off at the city's Art Center to teach, as Eira put it, 'Bratty rich kids that want nothing more than to piss me off.'

The rest of the car ride passed in silence, Grace struggling to stay awake. She reached the art center, unlocking the doors of her car for Eira to get out. "Hey, I'll see you tonight, right?" Eira said as she slung her bag over her shoulder. She was talking to Grace through the rolled down window. "It's your birthday, yeah?"

Grace smiled slightly. "Yes, Eir. Just no crazy bars, okay? Jim wants to come."

Eira gave her friend a mock salute before turning to cross the street that would take her to her job.

Grace shook her head before putting the car in gear and driving off to the library.

*o*O*o*

The day passed agonizingly slow and Grace found herself watching the clock. Loki had not shown himself today, and to her horror, she found herself thinking more about him. Aric's picture sat looking at her from her desk and she kept obsessing over the eyes. They looked so familiar to her…

She got up when she was convinced that she would fall asleep if she stayed seated much longer and made her way to the bathroom. Once inside, she did not meet her gaze in the mirror, merely splashing water from the sink over her face. There, that was a tad better. At least she could think clearer now.

She left the bathroom in a hurry, not even thinking about how quickly she opened the door. She needed to go. Now. Jim was supposed to be picking her up from work today to take her and Aric out to lunch. It was noon now… he should be there, right?

She went to the break room, clocking out as she grabbed her purse and jacket.

She did not realize how fast her feet were carrying her until she had made it to the front door, pushing through it… and the wood meeting something solid in mid swing. _Damn._

She poked her head through, unable to believe her bad luck as she looked at a Loki that was clutching his nose.

"Are you going to make a habit of hitting me every time I least expect it, Miss Donovan?" he was smiling through the pain that he was so obviously in.

"Oh my gosh," she spoke softly. She glanced around quickly to see if Jim was in the lot and let out a sigh of relief when he wasn't. "I promise I'm going to make this up to you somehow."

Loki's green eyes sparked at that and his silvertongue went to work. "Coffee."

Her brow furrowed in confusion as she bit her lower lip again. "Sorry?"

"You can let me buy you coffee," he said quickly, the words coming out in a rush.

Grace looked at him for a moment before she heard the unmistakable honk of Jim's car horn. She spun around to see Jim as he stepped out of the parked car and grabbed Aric from the baby seat.

"You ready to go, Honey?" he asked as he propped her baby on his hip.

Grace bit her lip even harder as she turned to look back at Loki. The already pale man had gotten paler- if that was possible- and she felt him tense up at the sight of Jim. She smiled weakly at him. "I… sorry, but… I'm involved with someone else right now," she said. Even as her words fell from her tongue she wanted to bite them back. Something about this man was compelling and she suddenly felt the need to know him… that she already knew him somehow.

Loki's emerald eyes dimmed considerably at that as he looked from her to Jim… and from Jim to the baby. The moment his eyes landed on her child, she could see a muscle in his jaw clench considerably.

* * *

**Please leave me a note to let me know how I'm doing! **


	6. Chapter 6

"_We've been falling for all this time_

_And now, I'm lost in paradise."_

* * *

The baby in Jim's arms could not have been more than three or four months old, yet the moment Loki's gaze fell upon it the child's green gaze had locked with his own. Grace cleared her throat as she nodded to Loki.

"I… er… I'll be seeing you, Mr. Nicholls," she said politely as she slung her bag over her shoulder and went out to meet her family. There was a hesitance in her eyes though and Loki fought the urge to reach out and pull her back to him.

The baby was still peering at him from across the way, even when Grace took him from Jim's arms. Loki was too lost in his misery to even notice the shriek the baby made as his little body lunged forward, arms outstretched to him. Grace had her back turned and she let out a little laugh to hear her baby make such a noise.

"Sh, Aric," she said good humoredly. "Don't be making a scene in the parking lot." She had put him back in his car seat at this point and Loki watched dumbfounded when she leaned up to place a kiss on her boyfriend's cheek. Heat surged through him to see that, to see another receiving affection from his lover.

The heat turned to ice as he watched the car crank up and turn out of the parking lot. Grace had barely spared him a second glance. Why would she? She had a family of her own to think about now… a family that did not involve him.

*o*O*o*

"Alright, Birthday girl, where do you want to go for lunch?"

Jim's voice broke Grace's train of thought as they sped down the road to the one main restaurant strip in town. "Anywhere's fine, Jim," she said with a wave of her hand. Jim cut his eyes over to her, but his vision was back at the road in front of him in a split second as well.

"You okay?" he asked as he took her hand. "What did that guy want at the library?"

Grace raised an eyebrow before waving her hand to dismiss him. "Nothing. I accidentally hit him in the nose with the door."

"Didn't look like nothing," Jim muttered under his breath. Grace ignored him, crossing her arms and looking out the window.

*o*O*o*

"Hey, Grace," Eira greeted her friend as she slipped into the front seat of Grace's old car. She looked back at a sleeping Aric in the back seat, then lowered her voice so she wouldn't wake him up. "How'd your birthday lunch go?"

"It was pleasant," Grace said idly. In truth, her head had been reeling the entire time over her conversation with the oh so mysterious Loki.

"Pleasant? Come one, hun, it had to have been nice. Your kid and boyfriend were there!"

Grace pressed her lips together in a tight line. Should she tell Eira about her dilemma? Her friend already knew that she wanted to know who Jim's father was and she had even urged Grace to just move on… Grace thought she had… until a certain library-goer had started messing with her mind.

"I just… I wish Aric's father was around."

Eira looked at Grace for a moment before patting her affectionately on the shoulder. "Grace, Jim would make a great father. I've told you that before."

"I know, I know," Grace said, adjusting the heater in the car. "I just… Someone else showed up today… and the two look a lot alike- Aric and this guy."

Eira had inhaled sharply at that. "Well, have you talked to this new guy?"

Grace bit her lip, nodding slightly.

"A lot?" Eira sounded slightly irritated.

"Enough to know his name… and apparently enough for him to want to ask me out," Grace blurted before the filter from her brain to her mouth could process what she wanted to say.

"He what?"

"Asked me out for coffee."

Eira sat her head against the seat. "You little flirt, you," she said with a huge grin on her face. She was clearly amused.

Grace's cheeks flooded with heat. "I am no such thing."

"Calm down, Grace. How did he ask you?"

Grace chewed on her lower lip. "Well… I kind of hit him in the nose on the way out the door… and the day before I toppled a stack of encyclopedias onto his head…"

"Sounds like he's really smitten if he still wanted to talk to you after that. Hell, he's trusting you with hot beverages this time."

"Eira, this isn't funny." Grace's hands were clenched onto the steering wheel at this point and she slammed on the brakes as the stoplight they were approaching turned yellow. "I… there's something about him. It's like I know him… and then I remember the brain injury and-"

"Grace, please don't do this to yourself," Eira said, serious now. "You have a good thing going with Jim. Don't let Encyclopedia Man mess it up. You did turn him down, didn't you?"

Grace inhaled, but nodded. Eira seemed to be satisfied and changed the subject quickly.

"I found a decent bar- don't worry, decent by your standards," Eira added when Grace raised an eyebrow unbelievingly. "It's a jazzy kind of place near the outskirts of the real party area. I thought you'd enjoy it tonight. Jim will too if he likes dancing."

Grace's lips tilted up in a small smirk. "Yeah, Jim told me. He's looking forward to it."

"You got a sitter all lined up, right?" Eira asked absently. Grace had been known to bale on particularly festive nights by 'forgetting' to get a sitter for Aric.

Grace rolled her eyes. "Yes, Eir, I'm having one of the neighbors watch him."

Eira nodded. "Good. Because otherwise he was about to get introduced to the bar scene and the blues of Louis Armstrong at the young age of three months." She was joking, but Grace still raised an eyebrow at her friends wry humor.

Grace gave Eira halfhearted smile as she dropped her friend off at her apartment.

*o*O*o*

Jazz music floated on the night air as Eira and Grace got out of a cab. People were already milling in and out of the bar, some staggering slightly. Grace looked down at her watch and noticed it was only ten o'clock. "I thought you said this would be calm," Grace said to Eira as the red-head straightened a too short mini-skirt.

"It is, Grace. Just… come on. What time did Jim say he would be here?"

"He said he had to work a little late. An unexpected meeting came up. He'll be here in an hour or so."

Eira nodded. "Well, we can get you to have a little fun beforehand, I suppose."

Grace rolled her eyes as her friend took her by the hand and led her through the crowd. The two found an open booth at the far end of the bar and they sat down. A waiter took their drinks, and Grace found herself thankful that she could hear the man's voice without straining her ears over the subtle jazz music. The place was packed, but the group seemed to be pretty docile so far.

Grace downed the beer the waiter gave her, happy to have something to relax her. Eira looked at her for a full two seconds before letting out a laugh over the foam of her own cup. "Miss Donovan, do you need help relaxing or what?"

Grace actually smiled this time as she took her friend in. "Hold on I'll get you another," the red-head said as she looked around for the waiter. "Well where the hell did he go?" she said exasperatedly. The bar was in the other room, past the dance floor, and Eira did not want to have to make that walk. Couples had started dancing to the swing music that the live band had picked up, making for tricky maneuvering through the bar. She cut her eyes at Grace. "I hope you realize what a good friend I am," she said exasperatedly as she rose from the table and walked away. Grace just smiled softly at Eira, knowing full well her friend just wanted to show off her outfit to the tables of single men she passed. Grace fingered the arrow head pendant and feather on the chain around her neck, the smile still on her face.

"Well, Grace, I'll admit I didn't expect to see you here."

Startled, she looked behind her to see Loki coming up to the table. "Mr. Nicholls," she said by way of greeting. Was her heart really going ninety miles an hour all the sudden?

"You can call me Loki, My Dear," he said quietly. "May I sit?"

She opened her mouth, trying to decide what to say, but closed it before she nodded. "I… I didn't think you a blues man," she said trying to make conversation.

He gave her a wry smile. "I like many things," he said quietly. That emerald gaze was peering back at her and she had the unnerving feeling that he could see straight through her soul… and it was so familiar! His gaze flicked to the necklace she had been playing with. "That is excellent craftsmanship."

"I'm sorry?"

He pointed to her necklace. "Did your husband give it to you?"

Her brow furrowed. "I… No. Jim- my _boyfriend_ did not give it to me. I… I have had it since I could remember." She did not miss the light in her table company's eyes when she said Jim was only her boyfriend.

"Well it really is beautiful," he said, almost to the point that she could not hear him over the jazz music. Someone had lit a cigarette at the table behind her and the smoke was starting to irritate her senses. She let out a cough as she waved the smoke away.

"Thank you," she said through her irritated respiratory system.

A small look of concern touched his eyes and Grace nearly fell over from how beautiful he was. Handsome was not even an accurate depiction.

"Perhaps you should remove yourself from this atmosphere," he said kindly… but there was a hint of mischief in his voice. "The dance floor seems to be void of any smokers."

Grace's eyes shot up to look at him and her heart skipped a beat. "I am sorry, but… "

"Just a dance between two friends," Loki said quietly. "You do owe me, after all, if I remember correctly." He was referring to her two incidents injuring him. She did not notice that he had brought his hand up to rest on the table and he was leaning closer across the wood to look at her in the eye.

Grace's breath hitched in her throat…

"Hey Grace!" Eira said as she walked across the bar, beer in each hand. The smile on her face had fallen into a soft 'oh' when she saw that the man Grace was sitting with was not Jim. "Who's this?" she asked carefully as she sat down next to Grace and across from Loki.

"Ah, Eira, this is Loki."

The red-head's eyes flashed slightly as she took him in, Loki was overpowered by the smell of magic once more as he looked her in the eye. Something was different about this mortal… If that was even what she was.

"Pleased to meet you," she said coldly as they shook hands. From her tone, it seemed she was most definitely NOT pleased.

Loki simply nodded to Eira, not bothered one bit by the sudden change in atmosphere. He glanced down at his watch. "Loki was just popping in to say hi," Grace said pointedly, looking at Loki with a glint in her eye. Loki remembered that look… When Anja put her mind to something it often emerged back in Asgard. There was no arguing it.

"Ah, yes," he said absently. "Well, I… really must be going, I suppose," he said carefully as he looked at Grace with an amused expression. He had found out what he wanted to know, after all, that her heart did not fully belong to another.

Grace nodded.

"I shall see you at the library at some point, Miss Donovan," he said with a smile that he hoped was kind. Grace's smile tightened, but she did not reply before he rose and left the bar completely.

"What the hell was that about?" Eira said as she leaned into her friend. "He's not the guy-"

"Yes. That was him," Grace said quietly, her gaze centered on his back as he went out the front door. He moved with such willow like grace. Eira had gotten very quiet, her full lips pressed into a tight line.

"Hey, Grace," Jim's voice reached Grace and she stood up after a second, giving him a tense hug. "How you doing?"

"I… good, Jim," she said as she sat down. "I'm fine."

Eira still had a funny look in her eyes, like she was fighting to keep up her happy demeanor. Something was bugging her, Grace could tell. She turned to Grace. "You guys, I think I'm going to head home."

Grace's mouth fell open, and Jim actually did a double take. Party-animal Eira wanted to go home…

"Are you feeling alright?" Grace said quietly as Jim took her hand.

Eira smiled again. "Yes, I shall be alright. I will allow you two some time to yourselves on this special night." She gave the two a big smile, but it was still forced… and why on earth had she started talking so proper?

"Ok, then" Jim said. "Just… make sure you call a cab."

Eira nodded, waving him off as she wished Grace a happy birthday.

Then she took off towards the same door that Loki had left by.

* * *

**And the plot thickens! ;) **

**Review? I want to hear theories about our red-headed friend, Eira :) think… Norse Mythology. **

**~Sirius **


	7. Chapter 7

A breeze tickled Loki's cheekbones as he strode swiftly down the dark sidewalk that would lead him to his apartment building. Silver eyes danced across his vision, the owner's smile standing out in his memory. Anja…

At the thought of her turning him away, Loki felt a bit of bitterness resurface under his carefully composed thoughts. He had all but suppressed the negative thoughts about anything since he had seen Anja drive away with that mortal she had called Jim, the bastard that now had his bride to be in his possession. He wondered if they had shared what the two of them had shared back in Asgard… if they had made love. Well, they had to of, hadn't they? Where else would that child in her arms have come from?

That set his heart racing and his blood boiling in irritation. He could not think about that. Anja… with someone else in such an intimate fashion… The very thought left him cold and empty; Desperate, desolate, and alone… Like he had felt when he had learned the heart-wrenching truth of his heritage. Only this time… This time he did not have his skylark to comfort him.

He reached the door that led to his apartment, slipping a hand into his back pocket for the key. He was highly surprised to see the lock undone as if by magic. He caught the faint whiff of something in the air… and immediately recognized it as what he had sensed coming off of Eira in the bar.

Had a lesser Norn wound her way into his own physical world now as well?

He inhaled, stepping through the doors. He knew the Norns would not let him come to any true harm. They wanted him to relearn his old ways, something he could not do if he was in a city morgue in Midgard.

He looked around stealthily, keeping quiet as he hung his coat up on the hook by the door. He could see a light on in the kitchen at the far end of his apartment and he walked slowly and deliberately down to see what had found its way into his make-shift abode. He poked his head around the corner, inch by inch and found…

Nothing.

With an exasperated sigh he turned back to his living room and flicked on the lamplight. He went to pour himself a drink from the canter on the bookshelf, sifting through the meager supply of books he had managed to check out of the library. One was missing…

"I must say, these conditions are far less than what a Prince of Asgard is used to, no doubt."

A Scottish brogue had filled the room and as his head snapped up to look in the mirror on the wall in front of him, he could see a head of flaming red hair staring at him intently from the one armchair in the room. On the figure's lap, the library book he had had with the others was sitting.

He turned around swiftly, taking in the unmistakable figure of Grace's friend Eira. So there had been something about her… _Best to play it cool, Loki…_

"And a locked apartment tends to deter most mortal women," he said quickly. His silver tongue was still at work.

Eira chuckled as she stood up, tucking the book under her arm. "Do not trouble your little head, Princeling." Loki let out a hiss as she addressed him as the Norns had before they had sentenced him here. "I mean no harm."

"Good-"

"To Lady Anja, that is."

Loki arched an eyebrow as the woman stripped out of her leather jacket. She was still wearing her too short mini-skirt and a camisole was all she had on under the leather of her jacket.

"And to me?" he said lethally.

"I must confess I care not one way or another about you, Princeling." The woman just looked at him, the two in a standoff.

"Are you planning on telling me why you saw fit to break into my house? If not, I have quite a headache and am ready to be alone."

A small chuckle came from Eira's throat. "I am here to ensure the safety of Lady Anja… or as she has come to call herself, Grace." She watched as he grimaced. "I can tell you do not think it a fitting name. I quite agree, but I am not one to argue with the Norns."

"What are you then?" he said dryly as he leaned against the bookshelf lazily, arms crossed.

He watched as the short red head turned around, pulling her hair over her shoulder so he could see the creamy expanse of her shoulder blades… Only where there should have been bare skin, there were the inky outlines of wings tattooed to her back. She turned around swiftly after she heard him let out a surprised gasp.

"I think you get the message," she said quietly. "They do grow a bit when I am in need of them... quite a bit. I am Eir, Valkyrie of Healing." She handed him the book, and he took it without looking at it.

Loki looked at her unblinkingly, clearly unimpressed. "Really," he said as he stepped away from the wall. "And that means what to me?" He was fast becoming tired of this woman's attitude.

"As I said, I am here- sent by the Norns- to look after Lady Anja as she is the more innocent one in all of this." Loki could tell there was more the Valkyrie- if that was truly what she was- was keeping from him. He was the god of lies, after all.

"Are you now," he said, humoring her. "Why now do you come to find me, then? I have been in this realm for nearly four months now."

"I came here, Princeling, to inform you of my presence. Lady Anja is a good woman, a kind woman. You left her with more damage than you know when you abandoned her in Asgard. I merely wish to ensure that you uphold your end of the bargain with the Norns."

"I seem to recall the bargain was very one-sided. I had no choice in the matter." Loki watched the Valkyrie think through what he had said before turning to place the book in his arms back with the others.

"Well, Loki," she grinned when he winced at her direct address of him. It was disrespectful on so many levels for someone to address him in such a way that knew his true rank. "I shall be keeping my eye on you as you seek to win your lady's heart back. I have been given the knowledge of you that the Norns possess, Princeling. I can only hope that you will find the strength to win her over as you once did." She was near the front door now, hand brushing the doorknob before he stopped her.

"And what of this Jim?" he said quickly before the woman could go anywhere.

She turned her head, not turning to face him fully, but by the way her cheek was raised he could tell she was grinning. "Prince Loki, surely one of your caliber for mischief can come up with a way to speak with Grace alone at some point during her days."

And then the woman was gone, leaving Loki in the fragile shell of certainty he had come to know as home.

*o*O*o*

Grace inched down the shelves of the children's section of the library, a tall stack of books in hand as she placed them back where they were supposed to go. One by one she laid them out on the lower shelves so the shorter children could grasp them easily.

Her long curls were pulled back in their usual braid and she tossed it over her shoulder as she rose from setting the last two books on the very bottom shelf. A sigh escaped her un-reddened lips as she popped her back, raising her arms over her head as she stretched. It was very near closing time and she found herself alone in the countless aisles of books. The smell of paper and dust met her nostrils as she took in another deep breath.

This was such a wonderful place. Truly, it was. And everything about her job came so naturally to her. It was a blessing that she could work here…

She looked up at the clock on the wall. Only another hour until her shift ended.

"Grace?" she turned around quickly to see one of her coworkers walking up to her from the stairs that led up to the reference materials.

"Yeah?"

"Could you cover for me? My sitter just texted me and said my son's running a fever. I'll let Miss Elena know she needs to stay at the front desk downstairs."

"Is anyone up there?" Grace said, her tone shriller than usual.

The other young woman shrugged. "The usual college students trying to finish their mid-term papers and a few others."_A few others, what did that mean?_"But I really need to get home. Thanks so much!"

Before Grace could object at all- which she wouldn't have even if she had the chance- the young woman had ran to the break room to punch out.

Her heart was in her throat as she trailed a hand on the old wooden banister of the stairs as she made her ascent. What if… Loki… Her head was spinning.

Her silver eyes scanned the room as she made it to the top of the stairs, hands in the pockets of her dress pants as she made it to the circular information desk at the center of the room. She was in her seat in one fluid movement, looking around at the people around her. To her left was a rather scruffy looking couple, the boy in a beat up baseball cap turned backwards and T-shirt, the girl in the same type of wear. An elderly man- a regular- was sitting at the window, looking out at the sun setting over the hills. A few more college students had flocked the computers.

"Are you looking for someone?" She recognized the voice before she saw who it belonged to… and it was coming from behind her.

She turned around to see Loki, typically pristine hair slightly disheveled and green eyes sharp as ever. "N-no," she said breathlessly. The collar of his dress shirt was unbuttoned slightly lower than usual and she could make out the rise and fall of his collarbone under the white linen.

He chuckled as he pulled a slip of paper from his pocket. "Well, I have a question for you. I am in need of a book of paintings by this artist."

Grace stuck her hand out to grab the slip of paper that Loki had produced… and that same familiarity she had felt earlier in the week with him was back in an instant. She met his eyes, looking into them as he peered back, small smile tugging about his lips… Those perfect lips…

She shook her head slightly as she looked down to focus on the green ink that had been used to write the words: _Claude Monet. _

That hand-writing… she knew that hand-writing from somewhere… The smell of leather bound books reached her… The feel of water against her skin… The passionate kiss of a lover in the dark… A lover that was not Jim.

"Um…" she said breathlessly again.

"I am told he is quite famous," he said softly. "But I am afraid I have been remiss in my learnings of Art history. I wish to rectify this problem."

Grace looked at him intensely, still unable to speak as her mind swam. "Um, yes, right this way, Sir," she said softly as she found her voice.

"Thank you," he said, and she could hear the smile on his lips in his voice. "And I told you to call me Loki, Grace," he said even softer. Only because she had been listening to his every breath did she hear his last comment.

She squared her shoulders as she kept walking towards the art section, choosing to ignore him. There was something brewing inside of her. Whether it was coming from her heart or her head she did not know.

Perhaps it was both.

* * *

**Haha see? Eira's not quite so bad is she? ;) I quite like writing for her. And don't worry, she'll be back soon enough. **

**Can I say this is my favorite chapter so far? XD **

**Review? **

**~Sirius **


	8. Chapter 8

"_As much as I'd like the past not to exist_

_It still does"_

* * *

Grace wordlessly made her way through the library, counting on the fact that Loki would be able to meet her quick pace. Part of her wanted him to have to strain to keep up with her. Her knowledge of the place and the regular inhabitants' seating arrangements made for a quick and easy walk through the quiet halls.

She did not look back at him as she made her way through the shelves, but by the sound of his softly treading footsteps she was sure he was right behind her. That bothered her a bit… but at least he was attentive.

He walked right up to her when she came to a standstill in front of the art section, looking for the 'M' section. He was almost uncomfortably close and she shifted awkwardly as she turned to point him to what he was looking for. There it was, high on the shelf, sitting just out of her reach. She felt like she should get it for him though… She suddenly felt very awkward and unsure of herself… His constant, hawk-like green gaze did not help matters either.

"I'll just-" She bent over to the stool that she could stand on to reach the books.

"I can assure you I can attain them myself, Grace," Loki said good-naturedly.

She shook her head. "These are pretty fragile," she said quietly, knowing full well it was a bogus excuse. There was nothing fragile or old about the heavily bound art books. Something else was making her want to help him… and she wasn't sure if she was happy about it or not.

"As My Lady wishes," he said softly. It did not occur to Grace that this was an abnormal way of speaking. It was quite the opposite to her, in fact, as normal as breathing. He extended a hand to help her up, but, just like the old Anja, she ignored it, turning away and pretending not to see it. A sense of heartache swept over him to see this poor creature, lost in a world of mortals because of his own actions.

Those feelings were cast aside as she stepped down from the ladder, heavy book in hand… and lost her footing completely, toppling towards him and the book flying with her.

*o*O*o*

Grace could not sort out what had happened. One second she had been standing precariously on the step ladder… and the next she found herself in strong arms, holding her up. Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut. She didn't realize she had been holding her breath until she let it out… and was met with an intoxicating scent, so familiar but one she could not place, when she inhaled.

Her eyes snapped open and she was looking into brilliant green eyes once more… Only this time they were closer than she ever could remember getting to them. The key there was 'remember.' The slightly darker rim of green around pale jade irises inflected with tiny specks of dark blue was enough to swallow her whole… and in that moment she knew she wouldn't mind if they did. What was even more off-balancing was the tingle of familiarity that had turned into a full-blown deja-vu episode with just coming in contact with him.

He spoke first. "Are you alright?" he said quietly. She was breathing in erratic breaths, trying to sort out what was happening. His arms were still around her waist, supporting most of her weight… and they felt so _good_. Her hands had rested instinctively around his neck and her body was sagging so that her chest was flush up against him as he held the two of them upright.

She nodded as she gained her bearings. Then she came back to her senses, pulling away from him quickly and straightening the hem of her blouse that had raised up a bit when it had rubbed against his clothes. "Forgive me," she said quietly as she picked up the book that had fallen just a few feet from his head. "I am not typically this clumsy."

Loki smiled kindly, but his eyes had saddened when she had pulled away from him. "Well, An- Grace," Loki had to correct himself as he spoke for he too was feeling so much more than he had felt in a long time… He was an older Loki in that moment, one that loved the simple side of magic and carefree days in the Royal Gardens. Her real name came too easily to him… "At least you missed my head this time," he said with a chuckle as he regained his composure. He leaned down to grab the book that had fallen beside him. "Are you an art fan?" he said casually as he flipped through the pages of impressionistic style paintings. He had noticed how she had looked over at the pages as he flipped through them.

Passion kindled in Grace's gaze when he mentioned art. "Oh yes," she said quietly.

Loki smiled again. "Monet?"

Grace nodded. "And Dali and da Vinci and…" She trailed off as Loki's gaze burned into her as he listened to every word she said, clinging to them like they were life itself. Grace blushed scarlet, once again thankful for her olive skin… although she was certain he could see the flush of her cheeks now.

"Perhaps a test of sorts shall be in order for me upon my completion of my studies then," he said jokingly. Grace just felt even more heat- if that was possible- flood her cheeks before she nodded. She was still highly flustered by what had just happened.

"Well if that's all you need I'll just be… going."

She turned away from him, gathering what dignity she had left, and began walking back to the desk. She stopped three steps in before she turned back to look at him. "Thank you," she said softly as she realized he had still been watching her.

"No, Grace," he said quietly, matching her tone. "Thank _you_."

*o*O*o*

The next time Grace saw Loki outside of the library she was in the grocery store. Aric was fast asleep in the cart, his little head resting against his carrying basket. It had been two weeks since the mishap in the library, two weeks that had left Grace's mind spinning each time she saw Loki or even thought about him. Eira had said she should leave well enough alone, perhaps the red-head was right… but then why did she have such an aching feeling of familiarity with this strange man?

It was not his looks, she kept telling herself that repeatedly when he would enter her thoughts. Yes, the man was gorgeous, unlike any other man she had seen in this town to be honest, but something about him drew her to him like a moth to a flame. She couldn't help but think that he felt the same way about her. And those eyes…

But what was she thinking! This man was barely part of her life mere months ago… a life that she had only had three months before she had met him… She looked down at Aric's peaceful sleeping face. His fat cheeks were sticking out slightly and his lips were puckered to match them, one cheek pressing against the side of his carrier. She stroked his cheek carefully as she turned to go down to the diaper aisle.

She was in the freezer section when she saw him. His back was to her, and he was reaching into a case and pulling some form of packaged food from it. Unable to help herself, she stood watching him as he looked at the frozen dinner, head tilted and brow furrowed in slight confusion… that turned to disgust as he opened the door again and placed the package back where it had come from.

Her heart dropped into her stomach when he looked up to see her staring at him. _Way to go, Gracie. _

He smiled warmly at her as he closed the door, his basket of food all but forgotten in the center of the aisle. "Grace."

She was stopped dead in the aisle as well, her feet unable- or unwilling- to move. He was walking towards her slowly, emerald eyes lighting on the child in the carrier she had placed in the larger part of the cart.

"How are you this evening?" he asked as made it to her. His eyes were no longer on the child carrier, but meeting hers.

"I… good." She mentally kicked herself. What, could she not form a correct sentence now?

His smile had fallen, but he was still looking at her with a kind light in his eyes. "And who might this be?" he said as he wagged a finger at the child.

The moment he had spoken directly about Aric, the babe's emerald eyes snapped open to peer directly at Loki… and then at Grace.

Sitting there in the middle of the zippy mart, Aric began to babble unintelligible whines and 'goos'. Grace had looked at the child, extremely taken aback as she tried to put his pacifier back in his mouth. It did no good so she unhooked him from his seat and tried to calm him. "This is my son, Aric."

The skin around Loki's eyes had tightened as he took in the child. "A very lovely child you have there, Grace," he said, his voice low. The baby was still looking at him with wide eyes, two fingers now in his mouth… and smiling.

Grace met his eyes, smiling as she kissed Aric's head. "Thank you, Loki."

Loki looked at the mother and son for another moment, jealousy inhabiting every fiber of his body. Nothing in his mind registered that this little baby was anyone other than Grace and Jim's, not even the stark green eyes. The dark curls that sat atop the child's head like whip cream on a sundae were his mother's through and through.

"Well, I'll be seeing you very shortly, Grace. I'll be dropping into the library to drop off the book you… helped me with tomorrow. I am better learned in the arts now and look forward to a discussion with you." His gaze did not waver as he searched her eyes for any hint that she remembered every detail of that day two weeks ago. He had held her… and she had reacted to him. Even if her mind hadn't, her breathing had picked up- not just from the fall- and she had blushed deeply at the feel of him against her. He remembered a time when she had not thought twice about bedding him… Grace was a younger, more innocent form of Anja… Slight whispers of the nineteen year old girl that had stolen his heart late at night in the gardens in a grown woman's body were intertwined with this version of his lover.

Grace returned his smile politely. "The book was actually due today," she said quietly, a playful smirk on her face.

Loki's grin turned into a full blown smile, rows of white teeth flashing under the fluorescent lights. There was the Anja that he loved, the feisty, intelligent woman that he remembered. "Very well, Grace, I shall have it to you at the timely fashion of eight a.m. tomorrow morning and not a second later."

His right hand twitched at his side as he fought the urge to grasp her hand that was not holding her baby and kiss it. _Too soon, Loki. Not yet._ Aric had not ceased his staring at Loki for the duration of the conversation, and his mouth was smiling under his fingers as he took him in.

"I will be expecting it, then," she said as a smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

Loki smiled again. This was where he should kiss her hand according to his good manners. But did mortal women do that? To his horror, he realized that he was actually thinking through what a mortal would like… that was so unlike him…

"Til tomorrow," he said. "Goodbye, Aric, it was pleasant to meet you."

The baby cocked his head to the left… and as Loki turned away, Aric started to cry out, slinging a spit covered hand after him. "Bababababa…." He trailed off and started to scream louder when Loki did not turn around. "BABABABA!"

Grace was frozen in place as she watched what had just happened unfold. She didn't move until Loki was long gone and Aric had quieted down. She was unsettled… and she was breathing quickly…

When she got to the car out in the parking lot, she pulled her cell phone from her back pocket and dialed the number of the person she needed to talk to.

"_Hello?" _

"Eir? It's me. I need to talk to you. Can you come over tonight?"

* * *

**Yeah…. So I've been trying to alternate updates between this one and Lacrimosa, but the muse really hit for this one and I had to write. I really think I might be siding with you guys. I have more fun with this story too ;) **

**Anything as far as cute moments that people would like to see? Or predict coming up in the future?**

** Reviews are love!**

**~Sirius **


	9. Chapter 9

"_And as much as I'd like to feel like I belong here,_

_I'm just as scared as you."_

* * *

"Grace, calm down," Eira said as she poured a cup of tea for her friend. After Grace had called her, the red-head had headed straight for her house. Aric was in his play-pen in the living room and Grace sat on the couch watching him like a hawk.

"Calm down?" Grace said quickly. Her voice was louder than she had expected. "Eira, I can't be calm. I've been calm for five months. I think a night of hysteria is overdue." Grace looked up as her friend walked up to the couch, handing over the warm mug of tea. Grace's long fingers wrapped around the porcelain, but she made no move to take a sip.

"Grace, honey, it's alright, okay?" Eira tucked a stray lock of Grace's hair behind her ear, trying to soothe her. "You really have reason to think that this guy, Loki, knows you?" she said calmly. "From before?"

Grace looked up from where she had buried her face in her hands. "Eir, I have very little doubt of it." She had told Eira about what had happened in the grocery store with Aric and even Eira had agreed it was a tad strange. "When we talk… I feel at home. I feel like it's where I am supposed to be."

Eira took a sip of her own tea. "And you don't get this feeling with Jim?"

Grace shook her head after she thought a moment. "He hasn't given me any reason to stay away from him."

"Other than the moderate stalker-like tendencies he seems to have picked up?" Eira said with a wry smile.

Anja pursed her lips. "I do not gain the feeling of uneasiness that supposedly comes with that… We… The other day-"

"Dear god, you haven't kissed him, have you?" Eira said with a little wink. "Hate to break it to you, Grace, but that tends to be a lead on."

Grace flushed. "No! But… he caught me from falling."

At that Eira sobered up considerably. "He what?"

"I was helping him with a book… and I fell… and he caught me." Grace's voice was small as she looked at her friend. Eira didn't say anything so Grace kept going. "And then… God, you are so going to laugh at me, but our eyes met and it was like I was staring into something I had seen a thousand times. I know it sounds like something out of one of those romantic movies you make me go to sometimes so you can laugh at them, but… Eira, I know him. He knows me too."

Eira had remained quiet the whole time Grace was speaking. "So you want to see him again?"

Grace bit her lower lip, tucking her knees into her chest as she looked over at Aric. "Well, we kind of already see each other in the library on a daily basis."

Eira smiled softly. "Grace, I think you should talk to him."

Grace's silver eyes had widened as Eira said that last sentence. "But what of Jim?"

Eira shrugged. "It would just be a friend to friend thing, right? Jim shouldn't mind- at least I wouldn't."

Grace nodded slowly. "Yeah, I guess you are right…"

"Christ, Grace, just do it. You don't want to miss out on this, trust me."

Grace tilted her head in confusion. "But you said I shouldn't a few days ago…"

"Grace, half the time_ I_ don't even understand what goes through my head. Please. Talk to him. Will you see him tomorrow?"

Grace nodded as she took a sip of her now cold tea. "He wants to talk about an art book… actually the book that caused me to fall when I helped him with it."

Eira smiled again. "Sweetie, go for it."

*o*O*o*

Loki woke up before his alarm clock for the first time since he had come to Midgard. With a groan, he rolled over to check the light blue glow of the digital letters of the small, time-keeping contraption. It was only five a.m.

What had woken him up in such a fashion? He had nearly an hour before he needed to be awake... yet something had set his senses abuzz. Someone was in his house again. He silently cursed the Valkyrie that had proven that she could come and go at will. It had to have been her.

He swung his long legs over the edge of the bed, his bare chest growing chilled when not covered by the warmth of his bedcovers. All he wore were pajama bottoms and he did not even think about donning a shirt as he walked down the hall that led to his kitchen. No light was on in the apartment, but he switched the kitchen light on as he made it to the white room. It took him a solid minute to get used to the light, yet again cursing the weakness of his mortal body.

When he was satisfied that he would not find Eira popping up anywhere, he turned to the tap, drawing a glass of water from it and drinking it down. He was fully awake now, he might as well stay up. It would ensure he made it to the library that much quicker to see Anja.

He could see his reflection in the dark glass of the kitchen window as the sun had yet to come up. The man that looked back at him looked no different than when he had been in Asgard, but he felt so much different. Besides the obvious lack of powers, he felt the differences between this mortal form and his god-form. He was weaker… and he'd be damned if he claimed his self-confidence was still fully intact. With a shake of his head, he turned back to look at the small counter that sat in the middle of the kitchen… and tilted his head in confusion.

Where the island had been immaculate and void of any clutter mere moments ago, a flyer with Edvard Munch's 'The Scream' sat dead center, a sticky note attached. Loki walked up to it slowly, grabbing the note that had a rather messy message scrawled on it:

_She'll say yes. _

_Don't screw this up. _

_~Eir_

Loki grabbed the flyer as he digested the note's meaning. It was a flyer for an art show in the community art's center. Free admission, a variety of artists… He allowed himself a small smile as he folded the flyer neatly and made his way back to his rooms to get dressed. Perhaps the red-head could be of use when she wanted to be after all…

*o*O*o*

"Hello, Grace," Loki's cool voice hit her in a wave as she looked up from her place at the reference desk. Elena had asked her to cover upstairs for the week that morning and she had accepted, knowing full well she would be able to talk to Loki that way.

Her eyes darted to the computer, eyeing the clock at the bottom right hand side. It read eight a.m. on the dot. "Loki," she said by way of greeting. She gave him a small smile as he produced the art book that he had borrowed and scooted it across the desk to her. "Punctual, aren't you?"

He smiled again as she stood to scan his book back into the system. "I am never late for a date," he said impishly as he grinned back at her, scanning her reaction with a fierce perceptiveness. Her smile tightened as she pressed her lips together and went back to checking his book back in. "Or a lesson."

She looked at him, something warm and unfamiliar pooling in her stomach as she took him in. To her astonishment she realized that it was desire, unfathomable desire to be near him. She had never felt this for Jim… and to be honest it scared the living tar out of her.

"I shall be over there when you are ready," he said quietly as he handed over the small fine for returning the book late. He was indicating a rather secluded set of table and chairs by the large window that overlooked the parking lot. Grace gnawed on her bottom lip, calculating and recalculating what she would say, what she could do to ensure that he knew this was strictly a friendly gesture.

With a light huff she looked around the library. No one was on this floor yet as it was still rather early. It was now or never. If she did not go over to him soon she would not be able to speak to him until her lunch break.

He smiled warmly at her as she pulled the chair out that sat across from him, sliding into the seat rather gracefully if she did say so herself.

Loki had pulled a few books from the shelves, pictures displayed of flower arrangements, the grounds of several old castles, and some ancient-looking gardens. Grace took them in with puzzlement as she stared down at them. There had to have been seven books splayed out in front of him as he looked over his steepled fingers at them.

"These are my favorites, I found," he said softly as he looked back up to her under his brows. He extended a slender hand to point to a picture that looked startlingly familiar. That same tingle that had started within her when she had first met him sprang forth again as she took the pictures in. There were beautiful fountains, flowerbeds, and countless walkways. "They remind me a bit of my home."

He was watching her intently as her brow furrowed. "Your home?" she said softly.

He nodded.

"What about your home is so similar to these images?" she asked hesitantly. Was he a duke or something? Why would he be here if he had access to grounds such as this in his home. And he would most definitely not know her if he came from such extravagance. She was a simple girl, always had and always would be. "You look troubled," he said softly.

"I am," she said simply.

"Because?"

"I am merely trying to understand who you are."

His emerald eyes lightened at that and he smiled. He did not say what he was thinking, that she had understood him completely at one point. Instead he reached across the table, his fingertips brushing hers lightly before she pulled away.

"Grace," he said hesitantly. Her eyes snapped up to meet his, both hands now in her lap. "I would like to ask you out again."

Her heart nearly broke to see the green of his eyes boring into her. His dark hair was slicked back, still collar length but obviously well cared for. He was such a mystery to her… a mystery that she wanted to solve.

"But… I…"

"And Jim need not worry, My Lady," he said calmly, imploringly. "I would only be stealing you for a night."

She shuddered at that last comment, chewing her lower lip as she thought through his words.

"Where did you have in mind?" she asked quietly.

* * *

**AN: I will try to update as soon as I can tomorrow, guys! Leave me a note pretty please! I love hearing yall's thoughts and speculations :)**


	10. Chapter 10

"_I have nothing left. _

_And all I feel is this cruel wanting."_

* * *

Grace tugged at the hem of her sundress, looking herself over in the mirror of her bedroom. She glanced over at her alarm clock, realizing it was getting late and she needed to get going. She had never felt more stupid. Eira had volunteered to watch Aric for the night, but Grace was still worried about what Jim would say if he knew she was going to an art gallery with Loki.

His green eyes danced across her memory and she suppressed the warm pool of desire that always seemed to form when his face crossed her thoughts. It was something old to her, something she knew she recognized, but found herself unable to place exactly where it came from.

Her cell phone rang, and she picked it up to glance at the caller id. It was Jim. She inwardly cursed herself and her rotten luck before setting the phone back down and letting the voicemail pick up.

She slipped her one good white crocheted sweater over her bare arms as she put her phone in her purse. Aric was at Eira's house safe and sound, but why did Grace's heart speed up in anticipation?

*o*O*o*

By the time she pulled up in front of the art gallery, the sun had started to set. A very large crowd had formed, people milling in and out of the building in their nice dresses and dress shirts. Grace chewed on her lip, clutching her handbag to her chest as she looked over the heads of the people around her for Loki's dark one. She looked around for five minutes, searching for the pair of emerald green eyes…

"Are you lost, Grace?"

That voice… Her heart leapt to her throat as she turned around to see Loki, dark hair slicked back and emerald eyes dancing as he looked down at her. A green dress shirt was tucked into his black dress pants and she swallowed as she took his full appearance in. "I was," she admitted, looking down at her feet.

Cold, long fingers were under her chin in an instant, lifting her chin up to meet his gaze and she felt her heart do a little dance at his touch. "Well, I would say you are not any longer," he said under his breath, a smile tugging at his lips. His fingers left her chin and she felt herself wanting them back there. He was so tall… He could probably tuck her under his chin if he wanted to. She cursed herself for wanting him to try it, a feeling that was all too familiar.

She cleared her throat as she turned to the gallery she had wandered into. "Thank you for inviting me to this," she said shyly. "It really is quite…"

She had trailed off as her eyes lighted on a painting in particular that caught her eye. He followed her gaze, realizing that she had taken a special interest in a painting that was an almost exact replica of Asgard's gardens. He smiled, a truly happy smile, as he watched her take it in.

"Do you find this one appealing?" he asked quietly as they walked over to the tall painting together. Grace opened her mouth to speak, trying to form the words.

"It is… It's really beautiful."

"Aye," he agreed as he tucked his hands behind his back. "As if from a dream."

She snapped her head back to look at him. "I was just thinking that same thing," she said quietly.

Silver met emerald as he gazed down at her. She saw his gaze flicker to her lips for the briefest moment, and she turned away quickly to look back at the painting. He led the way around the room, pointing out paintings he liked. Grace often found herself agreeing. The way he spoke was intoxicating, his voice like velvet, seductive. But that hint of danger- or was it suspicion?- was still there, tugging at her thoughts as she moved through the crowd with him. She really shouldn't be there. This was just asking for trouble…

*o*O*o*

"Grace?" They had stopped in a rather deserted gallery, an older couple the only other people in the smaller room. It felt like mere minutes had passed, yet when Grace looked down at her watch she discovered that it was nine p.m. Where had the time gone? Her feet shifted uncomfortably on the hard wood floor before she met his gaze.

"Yes?"

Loki was looking down his nose at her, pale lips pressed into a thin line. His hand at his side was twitching a bit, like he wanted to extend it towards hers. "Thank you for meeting me here tonight."

She chewed her lower lip as she faced him. He was staring at her again, nothing but feeling in his gaze. "Thank you for inviting me," she squeaked. She felt like a bird in front of a snake's predatorial stare, paralyzed by something she had not felt in a long time. She grew rigid as his long fingers reached out to take her hand, but allowed him to all the same… and stared wide-eyed as he turned her palm down and brushed her knuckles quickly with his lips. She did not fail to notice the strange ring of string around his wrist, a vibrant green that matched his eyes.

She lowered her hand from his when he released it, but when he looked back up at her there was a hint of sadness in his eyes. "How do you not remember…" It was a question spoken under his breath, but it sounded like more of a statement. A statement that stuck out in her mind like a sore thumb. Remembering was something she had been trying very hard to do since she had met him. Her heart raced as she looked at him… perhaps this was it…

"What?"

The sad look in his eyes dimmed as he looked back up to her gaze, a hand covering his mouth as his head reeled with the scent of her skin. "Nothing," he said quietly. He looked up, taking in the people through the doorway in the other room. Many were gathering their jackets as the gallery prepared to close for the evening. "It is getting late," he said after a moment of awkward silence. He started walking and Grace followed.

Grace pursed her lips, her face falling as she realized that he was not going to say anything more. "I suppose so," she said after another moment. They had made it to the coat rack by now and Loki grabbed her white sweater from the mix. He held it up for her to put on and she turned slowly, the sweater material gliding on over her arms as he helped her into it.

"Did you drive yourself or did you call a cab?" he said quietly, tenderly. She was growing weak in the knees under his gaze and she realized she could feel the warmth of his body for he was standing so close to her. Her nose was a mere six inches from his chest… If she were to stand on her tip toes, she might be able to- No. She would not kiss him. She barely knew him, after all, and Jim deserved better than that.

"I…" God, he was so close… and his scent… "Yes," she said as she stepped back from him, taking a hold of her thoughts and stepping away from him. "I am parked across the street. There weren't any spots left in this lot…" Why was she talking about the parking here?!

He smiled wryly. "I will walk you out," he replied evenly.

"No," she blurted out, kicking herself for her lack of tact. He raised an eyebrow at that. "I mean…. I can make it to my car safely."

He had fallen into step with her as they turned to leave the gallery completely. "Yes, I know that," he replied evenly as he slipped his own jacket on over his dress shirt, straightening the lapels as they made it to the door. Before she could reach it to open it for herself, his hand had shot out, taking the handle of the door and holding it open for her.

"So I shall be safe, thank you for your trouble," she said quietly, firmly. She feared what she might do if he stayed with her alone for any amount of time now. This attraction scared her. Not the intensity of it, but the sheer lack of foundation it was based on.

She took off at a brisk pace down the sidewalk after bidding him goodnight, the feel of his warm lips on her hand burned like a brand into her memory. It was a moment or two later that she realized he was following her out. She had made it to the edge of the sidewalk, just about to step off into the road to cross the street, when she turned around to see him. "So you are following me rather than walking me to my car?" she asked, still irritated, but not with him. With herself.

His lips tilted up in a half smirk. "Perhaps I am parked over there as well, Miss Donovan."

She furrowed her brow as she studied him. "Well then, goodnight." She did not miss the way his face fell when she showed she clearly had no intention of waiting for him to catch up.

She had been so involved with the idea of the man behind her, that she had missed the oncoming traffic that was coming her way. A speeding car's headlights were all she saw before she felt a strong grip wrap around her wrist, pulling her out of harm's way and into the chest of the owner.

*o*O*o*

"Gods, Grace," Loki's voice was all she could comprehend as she stared into a green dress shirt and black coat. "Are you alright?" Strong arms were around her, the owner's chin resting on her head as his breath cascaded over her. Her eyes were wide as she nodded, the weight of his chin restricting her movement a tad. Rain had begun to fall in large droplets as she pulled her head away from his chest. She looked up at him, her breasts undeniably against him as they had been that day in the library.

She couldn't fight what happened next, even if she had wanted to. He brushed her hair from her eyes, looking down at her with nothing but… love? It was the only way she could describe it. The hand that had pushed her hair out of the way cupped her cheek, his thumb gliding over her lower lip lovingly.

And then he had pressed his lips to hers and her whole world fell to nothing.

She opened her eyes briefly before she tore away from him. "No," she said quietly. "You know I have a boyfriend. This is not fair to him."

Loki took her hand again, looking her dead in the eyes. "Grace, forgive me. Did you not like it though? Did you not feel anything?"

If the heat in her cheeks was any indication of what she felt, she was most definitely sure she had felt something. "I- well..."

A smile was playing across Loki's lips as he watched her struggle with what she wanted to say. "I quite enjoyed it," he whispered as he took her face in his hands again. The street was deserted, the gallery-goers all heading to their cars in the other lot. His breath ghosted across her lips before he let her face go. "Be safe, Grace," he said quietly. She looked at him a moment longer, flustered, before she turned to go to her car. This time, Loki did not follow her.

That night, Grace's dreams got very interesting.

* * *

**Ok, so I hope this little chapter made up for such a long wait, guys. I have next chapter almost entirely planned out so it should be up soon. **

**Sheesh, what kind of dreams could Grace be having? ;) **

**Leave me a note! They seriously motivate me to crank out chapters for you lovely people…**

**~Sirius **


	11. Chapter 11

"_Run away, run away_

_One day we won't feel this pain anymore."_

* * *

_ Grace was in a great, golden room. It stretched for several hundred feet out in front of her, marble pillars holding up the vaulted golden ceiling. The room was breathtaking, and a golden aura was emitted from the walls. In the distance, through golden gossamer curtains, blue waters stretched towards starry skies. _

_ She started walking towards the end of the hall, as if out of habit as she took in the golden throne that her gaze had fallen upon. No one sat on it and her footsteps were the only ones that fell along the golden hall. She walked uneasily, feeling her way through the alien surroundings. _

_ She made her way out of the room and down a hallway, stopping in her tracks as she caught a glimpse of a moving figure in the reflective walls beside her. The woman looking back at her was dressed in a deep blue gown of fine silk and sheer materials, draped about her in an almost roman fashion. Around her neck was… a silver arrowhead and feather pendant. Her gaze stopped there as she realized whose face she would see looking back at her. Her gaze did not falter as she looked into her own silver eyes, a golden circlet around her head to match the golden embroidery of her gown. A golden band to match was curled twice around her right bicep._

_ Her breathing accelerated. This was all familiar to her… as natural to her as breathing now that she thought about it. But where was she?_

_ She picked up the hem of her skirts, realizing that she was barefoot against the cool floors. A balcony was to her left and she suddenly felt the need to have some air…_

_ Warm air clung to her, but she paid it no heed as she took in a breath of the outside world. A rousing boom in the distance caught her attention and her head snapped up to see a bright light touch down near one of the golden buildings. Her hands clutched the balcony in front of her as she took everything in. _

_ Her attention was diverted as two cold hands appeared on her shoulders, sliding down her arms to where her hands rested on the balcony. She could feel what felt like metal armor against her bare back as the owner planted a kiss on her left shoulder, speaking into her skin. _

_ "Welcome home, Lady Anja."_

*o*O*o*

Anja woke up the next morning feeling awful. The sound of Aric's cries caught her attention and she slipped out from the covers of her bed to pad down the hall to him. She had picked him up the night before from Eira's house… The night before. She could not bring herself to think on that. How on earth had she let Loki get that close? It had been unintended, that she knew. She could see it in his eyes that he hadn't intended to kiss her until he had her in his arms. And it had felt so… good…

"Shh, baby," she said as she picked the child up from the crib. She bounced him up and down on her shoulder gently, cooing to him as he relaxed against her. "Momma's here. Momma's here…"

"Babababababa," he babbled to her, the same sounds he had made when he had seen Loki in the grocery store.

"Aric, calm down, Momma's here."

The child's cries merely picked up in frequency, his pale skin flushing as he grew more and more upset. A knock at the front door resonated against Aric's cries and with a roll of her eyes, Grace made her way down the hall.

Her heart dropped into her stomach when she opened the door to see Jim standing there, dressed and ready for work. "Hi honey," he said over Aric's screams. He looked at the baby with a small smile, trying to soothe the child. "Awww, Aric," he said as he held his hands out to the baby. Aric looked at Jim for a whole two seconds before he had turned away from him, a hand in his mouth and still crying.

"I don't know what's got into him this morning," Grace said after another moment. "He woke up like this."

"And apparently so did you," Jim said with a laugh as he indicated her over-sized T-shirt and panties. She had completely forgotten that she was in her sleep-wear. She felt a flush touch her cheeks as she stepped to the side to let Jim in. "Did you sleep well?" he asked after a moment as he leaned in to kiss her cheek. Aric let out another shriek as Jim leaned into her, stopping the man in his tracks.

Grace gave him a sad smile as she nodded. "You want some coffee?" she asked as she was finally able to calm Aric down. She placed the baby in his playpen as she reached for a bathrobe that was draped over the recliner in the living room.

"That would be good if you've got it," Jim said as he took a seat at her kitchen table. "I don't have to be in for another hour or so. You?"

"I have the late shift tonight," Grace replied, her back to Jim as she set the coffee pot up.

"So I need to pick Aric up?"

"I can handle it. If worse comes to worse Eir can pick him up."

Jim's hand came down on the table, just loud enough for her to hear and she pressed the 'on' button of the coffee machine. "Grace." She chewed on her lower lip. There was a tone in Jim's voice that made her uncomfortable. "Can you please look at me?"

She kept her gaze fixed on the little red light of the coffee maker a second longer before turning around to look at Jim, leaning against the counter. "What's wrong, Jim?"

He ran his hands through his blonde hair before standing up abruptly. "Grace… I feel like I'm losing you."

She chewed her lower lip insistently as she looked at him. "What do you mean?"

He gave her an ironic smile. "You never ask me to watch Aric anymore. You didn't return my call last night after I left you a message telling you I got a raise… Grace. Relationships come from both ends."

Grace stared at him. The 'ding' of the coffee machine did nothing to pull her from her thoughts. "I don't… I don't need your help with Aric, Jim."

"Yeah but why didn't you return my call?"

"Jim… Can we not do this right now?" She turned around to pour him some coffee. "I'm tired."

Jim pressed his lips together in a hard line before he walked over to her turned back. She turned around to see him standing there, the hot cup of coffee clutched in her hands. "Grace. I don't want to lose you."

She saw him looking at her with nothing but adoration, caring. "Please, Jim, not here."

"Then where, Grace?"

Her nostrils flared as he brought a hand up to cup her face. It wasn't the hand that she wanted there… and she realized this as he took the cup of coffee from her to put it on the counter behind her. He leaned into her. "No, Jim."

He pulled back to look her in the eye. "No?" A tear trailed down her cheek as she met his gaze and he wiped it away. She closed her eyes at his touch. "Grace," he said quietly. "Baby, what did I do? Was it something I said, something I did?"

She closed her eyes, looking down as she shook her head.

"Is it someone else?"

She looked at Jim again, inhaling through her nose as Aric let out another torrent of cries. She looked over at the baby briefly before back to Jim. She couldn't lie. It wouldn't be fair…

"I think there might be," she said quietly.

Jim looked down at her, his eyes darkening. "So what does that mean for us?"

Her brow furrowed as she looked at him. "I… I don't know, Jim," she whispered. Aric let out another shriek, but quieted down again.

Jim stepped away from her, grabbing his jacket. "Well then… let me know when you've decided, Grace," he said sharply as he turned to leave the house. He was hurt and she could tell, but she did not follow him as he slammed the front door behind him.

* * *

**AN: I realize there wasn't much Loki this chapter, but I am going to try an approach where I update a bit more frequently, but with less words per update. This way I can keep bringing yall chapters more. Loki'll be back next chappie along with some more dreams ;) Review? **

**~Sirius **


	12. Chapter 12

Grace took a sip of her water bottle as she rocked Aric back and forth in his carrier. She had him situated on one of the picnic tables in the park outside the library, waiting for twelve o'clock to roll around so she could drop him off at daycare. Her shift started shortly after that and she was supposed to work til nine. She had doubled up on shift work in the past month to make ends meet.

Aric had been squirmy all day, writhing in her grasp when she tried to comfort him and trying to lift his little head up to look around when she laid him in his crib. She had hoped that the fresh air would help him, but he was still acting strange.

Her thoughts drifted to her encounter with Jim that morning. She felt absolutely terrible that they had left each other in such a way, but she could not help to admit that she felt as if a great burden had been lifted from her since that conversation. Perhaps it was for the best if they took a break. Despite her reasoning, she still felt the intense prick of tears in her eyes and she placed a hand over her eyes as she rested her elbow on the table. Sleep deprivation was not helping her emotions any either.

Aric's babbling picked up as she heard footsteps on the sidewalk behind her. "Grace?" At the sound of Loki's voice, Aric's babbling had come to a complete stop, a huge smile stretching across his toothless gums as he took Loki in.

Grace looked up at the sound of his voice as well, sniffling a bit. "Oh… hi," she said quietly. She knew her eyes were red from crying, but at that particular moment she did not have the strength to hide it.

Loki's face fell as he took her in. "Are… are you well?"

She wiped tears from her eyes with her shirt sleeve, trying to compose herself so she could talk to him. "I am fine," she managed.

Loki pressed his lips together in a tight line before sliding into the seat across from her. "Was it last night?" he said quietly.

Her brow furrowed, thoughts flashing to the dream. Clearly he meant the kiss. "No," she said after a moment. "I just… I am having a hard time right now."

"Can I help at all?" he asked quietly to her. His hand twitched at his side, wanting to reach out to hers but remaining in place.

Grace sniffled again, the knowledge that someone actually knew she was upset making it much harder to keep her emotions reigned in. When she looked back at him, the heartbreaking look that was in his eyes was shattering. "No," she said quietly. "Thank you."

The thin line that Loki's lips had formed grew even more pronounced as he took her in, utterly helpless across the table. Aric had started babbling again, happy now as he reached a tiny hand towards Loki. Her son's actions were not lost on Grace as she looked at him for a moment.

"Is it Jim?" Loki said after a moment.

Grace too in a shaky breath, looking at Loki. Had she ever told him Jim's name? She bit her lower lip, pulling a tissue from her back pocket before nodding. Loki felt elation soar through him to hear that… elation that was quickly shot down as he took in the sight of his old lover crying. She did not deserve to feel such a way. She was too good for that.

He reached out to her, a hand coming to take hers that had come to rest on the table. Even though she tried to pull away, he went for it anyway. The familiarity of it all nearly left him breathless.

Grace gasped as his touch reignited something within her, something that she had experienced the night before in her dream. _The image of a river, blue and sparkling in the hot sun as she sat on the pebble smattered shore danced across her vision. Someone was sitting to her left, a head of dark hair all she could make out for she was not looking directly at the person. His fingers reached for hers… She drew them away. He went for them anyway as usual. She did not speak for a few moments._

"Grace?" Loki was looking at her with a worried expression, his inky eyebrows knitting together in concern. She gasped as the vision left her. Was this a side effect from her head injury? A hallucination? Every bone in her body told her it was something more, something deeper. She felt connected to Loki… and that kiss last night had kindled something deep within her. "Grace…"

Her hand was in his and it had never felt more right… Yet she barely knew Loki… or did she? There wasn't a doubt in her mind that he was the figure from the images that had popped up in her head. Yet every scientific thought in her told her it was irrational… Yes, it was. The place she had dreamed about had been something from a fairytale. It had been too perfect, too beautiful to be real.

"I… I'm fine," she repeated. Her tears were gone now and shock had taken their place.

Loki pursed his lips before glancing at her son. The baby was still smiling at Loki, green eyes dancing as he tucked his chin in with a little happy clap, blinking hard. Without thinking, Loki's hand had gone to hold the babe's hand.

In an instant, Aric's fingers had curled around Loki's longer index finger, catching him in a death grip. Under Grace's wide eyed stare, Aric started to grin even wider at Loki, letting out a high pitched shriek. Loki looked at the baby, an obvious smile tearing across his face. Perhaps it would be best to not press her any further, he decided. He turned to something that would make her happy.

"I found a few more art books in the library this morning," he said quietly.

Grace's eyes lit up at that statement as she took in what he had said. "Really?"

He smiled back, nodding. "Yes. They are quite beautiful if you are interested in looking at them with me this evening."

Grace chewed her bottom lip, thinking. "Where?"

"The library would be fine with me, Grace," he said quietly.

She furrowed her brow, thinking. "Or…"she trailed off, rethinking what she was going to say.

Loki's eyes widened a bit. "Or?"

"… or you could come over to my house," she said after a moment. Why she was inviting him in, she was uncertain. But something in her heart was telling her to do it and she decided to follow it.

He grinned, reaching over to wipe a tear from beneath her right eye. "I would love to," he replied evenly, keeping the elation from his voice. She looked stunned as his thumb brushed the tear from her cheek, a whole new wave of familiarity coming back to her. She had felt that touch before, she was certain. Loki's attention was taken back by Aric as the baby kicked in his carrier, a persistent 'ehnng?' sound coming from his toothless mouth.

"He looks more like you than Jim," Loki whispered.

There was a funny look in Anja- Grace's eye when he looked back up to meet her gaze. She sat back, taking another sip from her plastic water bottle. "You think Jim's his father?" she said after a moment. She tucked her tongue against her cheek, sitting back a bit.

Something cold was forming in Loki's stomach as he took Grace in. "Who… who else?" he said after a moment.

Grace gave him a sad smile, something kindling in her silver gaze. She leaned into the table, meeting his eyes. "I… I don't know," she replied.

In an instant, Loki stood up, pieces of his life in Asgard with Anja coming back to haunt him. Dark rooms, sleepless nights… a comfort he had only been able to find with her… One look in the baby's green eyes told him everything he needed to know. He was looking at his own eyes when he looked at the child…

How had he missed that before?

He took a step backwards as he looked down at his son. "I… I just remembered I… I have to go," he said after a moment. Grace looked slightly taken aback. "I shall see you tonight," he said quietly.

"Do you want my address?" Grace said a half beat later.

"I… I'll call you, Grace," he said as he went to turn away from his… family… A certain Valkyrie had a lot of explaining to do.

* * *

**More to come on Loki's emotions, but a new chapter is called for :)**


	13. Chapter 13

"Eir!" Loki let out a harsh bark of the Valkyrie's name as he tromped into his apartment. At that moment, he didn't care if his voice reached the top floor of the dung hole apartment building he had had to live in for the past few months. He didn't care if the bitch even heard him. All he knew in that moment was that he was angry. Angry at the world, angry at the bastard called Jim for trying to steal his Anja away from him, angry at his father, his brother… himself.

That last thought startled him. Never, ever did he remember feeling angry at himself… Aggravated at this realization, he let out another yell. "EIR!"

"What in Valhalla is wrong with you?" the red head said as she appeared in his kitchen, red hair pulled back in a tidy bun and white dress shirt clean and pressed. It was far different from what he had seen her in at their first meeting, yet he could not bring himself to care. He was practically seeing red for he was so angry.

He snapped his head around to look at her, her small frame propped against the counter, arms crossed across her chest. "Why didn't you tell me?" he said quietly, deadly.

Eira raised an eyebrow, tilting her head as she took in the raging ex-prince of Asgard. "I'm afraid I don't-"

"Don't you dare start with me," he said as he ran his hands through his hair. His anger was tearing through him, a fire kindling deep where hopelessness had once inhabited. The red head's eyes were wide, but she showed no sign of intimidation. "Tell me who Aric belongs to."

"He's Grace's son."

"No." His voice was icy. "He is Anja's son. Who is his father?"

"You call her what you will, Princeling. It does not change the fact that you left her-"

"Who is his father!" His voice ripped from his chest, desperation, sorrow, hurt… He needed to know. He needed to know if Aric belonged to him. He didn't even know what that would mean to him, especially not in these circumstances, but the thought of Anja, alone and pregnant in Asgard because of him was making bile rise in his throat.

Eira blinked once, taking in the sight before her. "I would tell you, Loki, but it is rather evident that you have figured it out on your own, even if you refuse to accept it."

The blood drained from Loki's cheeks and he sank back against the opposite counter, his hands tingling as his anger dissipated as quickly as it had come. He suddenly felt light headed, his rage taking his strength from him as his mortal form slumped against the counter. A slender, spider-like hand went up to cover his eyes and he squeezed the emerald orbs shut. "Why did you not tell me?" he asked quietly, unwanted tears forming in his eyes. "That that poor girl… my wife in all but name had to carry my offspring on her own?"

Eira stood up straight, straightening the hem of her shirt as she looked down at him. "You should have realized that it was a profound possibility, Princeling," she said coldly. "You had lain with her several times before you left her."

"I had no choice," he spat.

"Oh, bullshit," Eira snapped, her mortal side taking over. "You always had a choice. That statement right there just proved that you haven't changed one bit. You are blinded, Loki, blinded by hate and anger. You betrayed your family when all they ever offered you was love. You betrayed your lover when all she ever gave you was her undying devotion… and now, you betray your son by being blinded even now to your indiscretions."

Loki had slumped to the floor now, face hidden in his hands as a sob tore through him. "Why did you not tell me?" he said quietly.

Eira let out an irritated sigh. "If you must know, I was told not to help you in any way. Those tickets to the art show were very close to overstepping my bounds."

Loki had kept his eyes on his feet, wallowing in his self-pity. "You could have told me."

Eira rolled her eyes, bending down with surprising strength as she lifted Loki under his arms and propped him against the counter, steadying him before she went to the sink. She poured a glass of water, shoving it into his hands. "Drink that," she ordered, opening the curtains and letting sunlight in. Loki, still half-propped up, his shoulders at an awkward angle as they bore his weight, looked down at the clear substance. "Now, from what I understand you have a date tonight."

Loki raised an eyebrow.

"She called me," was all Eir said by way of explanation. "But that's beside the point. You want her to remember you? Show her the little things that will trigger her memories."

Loki furrowed his brow, recovering from his lapse in emotional control. "What is that supposed to mean?" he said quietly.

"You'll figure it out," Eir replied as she slipped into her jacket, smoothing her bangs back behind her ear. "You may want to get ready though. Here's her address," she said as an afterthought, scooting apiece of paper towards him.

Then the Valkyrie was gone, disappearing completely.

*o*O*o*

Loki got out of the cab he had used to get to Grace's home gracefully, his eyes still a bit sore from the tears that had fallen unbidden with Eira. It was a charming house, with white siding and green shutters along the glass windows. If Anja had lived on Midgard to begin with, Loki was certain she would have lived in a place like this.

He inhaled, smoothing his hair back for a third time since he had left his apartment before rapping twice on the door.

He could hear a loud outcry from within, a sign that her son was home… no, his son too now.

"Just a second," Anja's voice came from deep within the house as he heard Aric's cries get closer. "Oh, Aric," her voice was laced with dismay as she reached the other side of the door. The knob turned after he heard the sharp click of the deadbolt sliding out of place and then he was looking at his family.

Grace's right shoulder was covered in something white and creamy… and Loki automatically realized it as spit-up from the babe on her hip. Underneath the stickiness, though, she was wearing a lovely shirt that was the same green she had worn in Asgard. Loki's breath hitched in his throat.

"Hi," she said quietly as a smile stretched across her lips. It did Loki good to see her that happy… and all for him too. The sad feelings in his heart were lightened, forgetting the mood swing he had gone through earlier. This was his Anja, his family, his son… At that thought, Loki's gaze lighted on the baby that was peering back at him intently from Grace's arms.

"Hi," he said a beat too late.

Grace, automatically taking his pause as disgust at the child's throw up on her shirt. "Sorry," she mumbled as she shifted Aric so she could use the cloth diaper to wipe what she could up. "He did this right when you knocked."

"It is alright," he said with a warm smile. "Children will be children, yes?" he said after a moment.

Grace's lips tilted up in a small smile as she let Loki into the foyer. His dark head tilted backwards as he looked up at the ceiling, taking in everything with a scholar's gaze. When he heard Aric let out another shriek, he looked down at the toothless grin on the baby's face…. And a smile of his own spread across his lips as the baby leaned towards him in his mother's arms.

"That's funny," she said quietly. "He hasn't done that to anyone else…." She eyed Loki for a moment. "I need to change…" She looked down at the spit up on her shirt. "Would you like to hold him?"

Loki inhaled once. He had not held a child before, ever. There had never been the need for he had been the youngest in his family. But something felt so right to do it. His child wanted him to hold him. How could he refuse?

He nodded as he held his hands out, the child all but leaping into them from his mother's embrace.

**Leave me a note? :) **


	14. Chapter 14

"_Take it all away_

_Shadows of you_

_Cause they won't let me go"_

* * *

As Grace disappeared into the back, presumably to her bedroom, Loki looked down at the baby in his arms. The resemblance that the child held to him was uncanny to say the least and he found himself mentally kicking his stubborn self for not realizing it sooner. The grin that ripped across his face as the baby nestled into his shoulder could not be helped though, and he found himself bouncing up and down slightly as Aric let out a yawn.

"Aren't you a magical little one," he found himself whispering to the child. He placed a light kiss on Aric's soft head as the baby's eyes drifted closed.

He heard movement in the back of the house as Grace came back several minutes later, a blue dress hugging her tall frame gracefully. It was still modest, despite the way Loki felt when he saw her in it, and it was every bit something that Anja would have picked had she had her memory. He noticed absently that she was barefoot…

"Goodness," she said quietly as she took in the sleeping baby in Loki's arms. "I don't think he has ever been this at ease with a stranger." Loki had pressed his lips together at that and Grace blushed. "I mean, not that you're a stranger but… well-"

"It is alright, Grace," Loki said quietly as he walked up to her to pass the baby off to her. "I understand."

She smiled wanly at him as Aric passed from him to her without stirring. "Well, I guess we'll be in peace to look at those books of yours at least for a little while since he's asleep. I'll go put him down."

Loki felt his heart sink as he remembered that he had left the books back at his apartment. With all of the day's events, he had clean forgotten to grab them before he had left. "I… Forgive me, Grace, but I seem to have… forgotten them." Forgotten them? How on earth could he have made such a mistake…? It was so… mortal. A flash of white hot pain surged through his arm as the piece of string from the Norns punished him for his negative thoughts. The thing had been rather temperamental since he had come to Midgard. It had hurt him when he had thought 'impure' thoughts about Anja, yet when he had kissed her outside the art show it had shown no sign of hurting him. It crossed his mind that Eira may have had something to do with the string since she had seen his little show today.

Grace smiled a little wider when she heard him say that. "Well, I suppose we could find something else to do," she said quietly. Loki felt his heart jump to his throat as her gaze met his. How many times had she insinuated they do 'something else' back in Asgard?

She didn't give him time to respond as she turned on her heel and walked back down the hall to Aric's bedroom. When she came back, Loki was still standing with his coat on his back, rigid as a post in the living room. Grace looked at him for a second before walking over to the couch. "We could… would you like some coffee?" she said after a moment. "But I can take your coat first if you want. Sorry, my manners seem to be lacking as of late."

Loki smiled again at her. "No, It is fine, Grace. Nothing is lacking about you." _But your memories…_ he added mentally to himself. "And coffee would be wonderful."

She blushed even deeper as she took his jacket from him, her strong hands brushing his as familiarity began to tingle in the back of her brain. Loki followed her into the foyer, branching off as she indicated the kitchen to her left. He sat down at the old wooden table, hands resting on his knees. She set the coat on a hook by the front door carefully before coming back into the kitchen. Loki looked up when she came back in.

It was far too quiet for Loki to feel at ease, and he could sense she was a bit uncomfortable as well. "How… how was your day at work?" he asked quietly.

She popped a coffee filter into the brewer before she turned to sit down across from him. "It was tiresome," she replied quietly.

He nodded solemnly.

"What do you do?" she asked after a moment.

"I'm sorry?"

"Your job. Where do you work?" He blinked at her once. "Forgive me," she said hurriedly. "You just… I fear I do not know you that well."

He laughed once. "Well then, I feel we must rectify that, yes?"

She chewed on her lower lip, nodding as the coffee machine went off. She got up awkwardly, pouring a cup of coffee for herself after she handed him his own.

"I… I am not from around here," he began as she cupped the mug of hot liquid in her hands.

"So you are a foreigner?" she said quietly when he did not finish.

"Well, you could say that," he replied. Why did he not tell her the truth? Perhaps it would jog her memory… But truthfully it would probably just scare her away. "But, to answer your previous question, I do not work. I have not the need."

Grace looked at him, silver eyes boring into his green ones. "Do you have a family, Loki?"

_Yes. You and Aric… _He did not consider Thor or his father and mother to be his true family, not a family he cared about anyway.

"We rarely speak," he said quickly, thankful that his silver tongue was not something that he had lost with his mortal form.

"Ah," Grace said as she sat back in her chair. "I've no memory of my family. Someone told me they died before my head injury but…" She pursed her lips, leaning into the table as she folded her arms on the hard wood. "Can I tell you something?"

He raised an eyebrow, completely unaware that he had leaned into the table as well, before nodding once.

"I do not think I am completely alone. I've always had a gut feeling- at least since my injury- that… God, you'll think I'm crazy."

"No, Grace. I won't." He spoke quickly, passionately as he pressed her further. The sheer intensity of his gaze boring into hers was enough to make her believe that whatever she was about to say- no matter what it was- was worthwhile, that it meant something. She had never felt that with Jim…

"I've… I've always felt like I'm not alone. That… There's someone else out there for me." Her entire face was bright red now, showing through her dark complexion with ease.

Loki pursed his lips as he took a sip of the brown, bitter liquid in front of him. "I understand completely," he whispered. Had she not been listening for his reply, she might not have heard him.

She looked at him over the top of her mug as she mulled over his reaction. He seemed to be thinking about it thoroughly, those green eyes darting back and forth under his dark lashes as he took in what she had said. He looked back up at her, longing and-was it pain?- in his eyes. "Is something wrong?" she whispered. Why she was being so quiet she had no idea, but she could not bring herself to speak normally.

His eyes met hers, locking onto her with a soul-searching fervor. "No…. No. I am fine, Grace." He pursed his lips. "It's just… you remind me of someone very dear to me."

"Oh," she said quietly, chewing her lower lip again. The effect on Loki was maddening, and he cursed himself as he thought about all the uses he could make of that lip. The string on his wrist flashed a bit of pain through his arm as a warning, but not enough to truly hurt him. "Is that why you keep talking to me, then?"

He saw his mistake just a half-beat later. "No!" he nearly cried out as he tried to make amends. Before he knew it, his hand had reached out to hold hers… and she was not pulling away. "No. Grace." He searched for words, yet they would not come. He heard her sharp intake of breath as the warmth of his palm met hers and their hands interlocked completely. "You… You bewitch me, Anj- Grace." He very nearly blew it.

Her brow furrowed, a smile turning the corners of her lips upwards. They spoke of many things then, Loki listening as she spoke of painful memories that the Norns had filled her head with, and she listening to his own likes and dislikes. Loki did not register that they would seem like any mortal couple should someone happen to see them in her quaint little home.

*o*O*o*

The night grew later and later, Aric sleeping peacefully as his parents spoke to one another. Grace got up to check on him twice, each time coming back with a smile on her face. The silver that Loki loved so well came alive quickly as they spoke.

Midnight rolled around all too soon, and Loki realized that he should leave Grace to Aric. It pained him to leave her, to be away from her now that she had opened up to him so fully, but something in his gut told him that this was the time to leave.

He rose from the table, thanking Grace for the evening as he pushed his chair in.

"I… I'll walk you out," she said quietly, the pain of his departure clearly evident on her own face.

"That would be appreciated," he said, mocking a bow to her as she rose with him. Only to Loki… It was not exactly a fake bow.

"Thank you for coming over tonight," she said quietly as he donned his coat in her foyer. "I very much enjoyed it." She had wrapped a woolen blanket around her shoulders.

He gave her a small, knowing smile as he straightened his jacket. "And thank you, Grace, for extending your hospitality to me."

She opened her front door, the cool night air hitting the two of them in a wave. It seemed to exhilarate Loki. He looked left, then right as they made it to the steps of her porch, realizing the cab he had called had not yet shown up.

When he turned back to her, she was looking at him with a strange expression. "What?" he said quietly.

She pressed her lips together, tossing her long curls over her shoulder as she took a step closer to him. "Your cab is not here yet," she said simply.

He smiled fully then, rows of white teeth flashing in the lamplight of her porch. The crisp night air made his spirits a bit higher as he walked right up to her. "Thank you for having me over tonight," he said again. Tentatively, gaging how she would react, he placed a single hand on her cheek. Her silver eyes closed as his palm came to rest against her face, his thumb stroking her cheek… and then her lower lip.

He could kiss her. It would be so easy… No. He closed his eyes as he pulled away from where he had been leaning into her, shaking his head slightly. Too soon, too soon… Unless…

"Loki," she mumbled, barely decipherable as Loki felt the tension between them build. Her body wanted him, yet she was too far gone in the Norns' magic to register it. "Please."

"What?" he whispered as he brought his forehead to hers, closing his eyes as well. His thumb was still caressing her cheekbone lightly.

"Kiss me," she said, genuinely anxious now. Her arms stayed by her side, clutching the blanket to her as she inhaled his scent; so familiar, yet so foreign.

"As my lady wishes," he whispered, fighting the urge to smile in triumph. The string on his wrist did not inflict any pain on him as he brought his lips to hers, falling into the kiss just as surely as she was now that she was no longer tied to that foolish mortal, Jim.

Tenderly, he pressed his lips to hers, kissing her lower lip before pulling away. She was dazed as she took him in, placing her own hand to his cheek. "You are so familiar to me," she whispered. He nearly laughed out loud at the irony of it all. She was dearer to him more than she knew.

She pulled his head down to hers once more, kissing him a little bit more fervently this time. He found himself lost in her, lost in the idea that she was his again, that she was taking him back. His Anja… his beloved Anja was kissing him like she once had.

He broke off the kiss, testing how far she wanted to go as he trailed his lips to her jaw, pressing her to the side of her home as he supported his weight by placing his hands on either side of her. "Oh Anja," he groaned into the base of her neck.

And then he felt her stiffen, her hands that had been in his hair stilling as they fell to her side.

"What did you say?" she whispered, blood draining from her face. She pulled from his embrace as she took a step away from him.

He looked at his feet. "Anja. I called you Anja."

Her eyes were wide as she took him in. "Is that who you think I am?" she said after a moment of awkward silence. "Who I remind you of?"

Loki mentally kicked himself, meeting her gaze. "No," he said quietly as he took a step towards her. Tears were in her eyes now and he realized why. She thought he had been using her. "I called you Anja because that is who you are."

Her intense stare did not waver as she looked at him, arms crossed. Her dream from several nights ago flashed through her mind.

_"Welcome home, Lady Anja…" _


	15. Chapter 15

Grace stood in front of Loki, arms crossed and the blanket around her shoulders wrapped tightly around her. Her silver gaze was wide, a single tear had escaped her left tear duct. "You're wrong," she said finally.

Hurt flickered across his eyes as he tried to reach out to her and she pulled away. "I'm not," he whispered quietly to her. "Anja, please-"

"Don't call me that," she said sharply, snatching her hand away again. "I'm Grace Donovan. I work at the library. I'm not this… Anja you think I am."

Loki pressed his lips together in a fine line, the headlights of the taxi cab appearing at the end of the street as he looked back at her. "You think I am trying to hurt you?" he said quietly.

Grace bit her lower lip, looking at him as she deliberated. "I think it's time for you to go, Loki," she said quietly.

His heart sank as he looked at her, green eyes waiting for her to recognize him. Only she didn't. her silver gaze was only clouded with hurt and confusion. The taxi cab honked its horn impatiently as they stood there, emerald meeting silver. This was it. He could tell her everything. He seemed to have lost everything at this point anyway.

"Please, just hear me out," he said quietly. She glanced at the yellow car, waving and asking for one moment with a sign of her hand before turning back to him.

"What?"

He took in a deep breath of night air as he looked at her. "You said to me you felt like someone else was out there for you, someone that you thought of as family." When she merely looked at him, he continued. "What if… I were that someone?"

Her brow furrowed, looking at him with confusion.

"You don't feel like you belong here… because… well, you don't."

"Well thank you for your opinion," she said, halfhearted sarcasm dripping off of her words. From inside the house, Aric's cries were starting. She rolled her eyes in exasperation as she looked back at the strange man before her. "Now my son needs me. Goodnight, Loki."

His mind was reeling as he took in the girl before him. "Anja-"

"Stop calling me that!" she said, vehement this time. She was terrified. This man was bringing forth dreams that she had all but suppressed… and the more she looked at him… the more she realized that there was a whole level of understanding that should have come with the visions. "You're going to miss your cab," she said quietly after another second.

His lips tightened into an even thinner line as he looked at her, then he bowed quietly to her and made his way off of her porch and to the cab, looking back only once at the silver eyed girl from Vanaheim.

*o*O*o*

_Grace was in the golden hall once more, dressed in the same manner as she had been in her previous dream. She was alone, despite the familiarity with the place she felt, and her footsteps fell lightly along the marble floors. _

_ As she walked, she made her way to the end of the hall, stepping through massive golden doors and down several flights of steps. Somehow, she knew she was going to her bedchambers. Upon reaching a smaller, less extravagant door, she stopped, pressing a palm to the wood and pushing through to the room within. It was simple… and it reminded her oh so much of her own home. _

_ A large, leather bound book was sitting on the neatly made bed, the quilt that stretched across the mattress very similar to the one on her own bed. She opened the book to its cover page, feeling a wave of déjà vu overpower her as she took in the elegant script within it. _

_ The message in the front cover was what made her heart leap to her throat though. _

"_As days go by, the memories remain. I wait for you._

_~Loki"_

_ The book fell from her grasp as shock registered with her and darkness overtook her dream once more. _

_*o*O*o*_

_ Cold skin brushed against Grace's as she tried to make out where she was. It was dark, that was certain, and the unmistakable weight of another body on top of her pressed her into the soft surface she was lying on. In a burst of intuition, she realized that she was laying on a bed… a very comfortable one at that. Her eyes adjusted slowly to the darkness and she let out a gasp as long, cool fingers snaked in between her thighs. _

_ "Anja…" the groan that came from the man atop her made her shiver with… desire? She was unsure, but where she knew she should have felt terrified to be in such a strange position with an unknown man, all she could feel was peace. The knowledge that this was right and where she belonged was engrained in her and her mind barely comprehended the strangeness of the situation… Because it was all so natural to her. _

_ The fingers in the 'v' of her thighs began a pleasurable torture as Grace's head fell backwards onto the plush feather pillow. It did not escape her notice that the fingers were cool, a harsh contrast to the heat that had formed from the figure's attentions in her most private place. Cold kisses feathered her neck as she nearly drowned in the waves of pleasure she was being exposed to. _

_ Her climax seized her quickly and unexpectedly… And she cried out a single word as she spiraled downward… _

_ "LOKI!"_

*o*O*o*

Thump… Thump.. THUMP!

The stamp in Grace's hand came down harder and harder on the books she had been cataloguing as she thought more and more about her conversation with Loki the night before. He had seemed convinced that she was this Anja figure, yet she knew it to be false. She had seen her I.D. in the hospital after she had woken up from her head injury. She knew that she was Grace Donovan, librarian and mother. She was not this Anja woman that Loki had seemed to believe her to be.

And yet that dream last night… It had been so vivid, as clear to her as the letters on the pages of the books in front of her. Thump…. Thump… A soft noise from in front of her desk causing her hand to pause mid-stamp and look up.

Her heart dropped to her stomach as she realized that she was looking up at the last man on earth she wanted to see in that moment.

"Anja," Loki said quietly as he watched her keenly.

She ignored what he had called her, eyes locking with his as thoughts of her dream came back to her. She swallowed as she looked at him, the stamp still hanging midair before she lowered it. "Can I help you?" she nearly whispered. He had brought a long-fingered hand to his chin, stoking the obvious shadow of a beard that had formed. That hand had been somewhere much more intimate last night in her dreams…

"I… I keep thinking about last night," he said after a brief pause.

Grace cringed. "Coincidentally, so do I," she replied evenly as she looked him dead in the eye. Heat was flooding her cheeks.

"I want another chance," he whispered evenly as he looked down at her, emerald eyes imploring.

"Well, I'm working right now," she said dismissively as she returned to stamping.

"I can talk with you here."

"Loki, You'll get me in trouble." Her gaze was serious, nothing betraying her words.

He pressed his lips in a fine line. "Anja."

"Stop calling me that," she whispered. "Go home, Loki."

He shook his head, a small, deliberate smile on his face as he took her in. "It is a free country, Miss Donovan." Her silver gaze flashed up to his and she absently noticed that a line of people had formed behind him, waiting to check out books. He was looking at her intently. "And I am not leaving here without you."

She pursed her lips. "You are infuriating," she said finally as she went back to her books. The people behind him were growing restless. "Just… leave me be," she said after another moment. She was looking at his blasted hand again.

His hand shot out to her arm, catching her completely off guard as he gently squeezed her upper arm. She gasped as fire erupted throughout her, a familiarity so obvious that she could not have been imagining it blossoming deep within her soul.

"Please," he whispered.

Her gaze met his.

_"Please Anja, just let me love you… And let yourself love me. I know you do…" _

"Grace!" her boss's voice snapped her out of the vision she had been having as she tore her eyes away from Loki. He did not relinquish his grip on her arm for a second more before Miss Elena had come round the corner. "These people need assistance."

"Y-yes, Miss Elena," Grace said quietly as she stepped away from Loki. Despite Miss Elena's interruption, he had kept his eyes fixed on hers. "Hey, uh, Jaimie?" Grace said as she turned away from Loki to a blonde girl down the way. "Could you cover for me until lunch?"

Loki's heart soared as the young woman nodded and Grace grabbed her purse from beneath her desk.


	16. Chapter 16

"Where are we going?" Grace said quietly as she made it to the front doors of the library. Loki reached a long-fingered hand out to the door in front of them, holding it open for her as she walked through.

"I had a place in mind," he said after a moment of obvious deliberation. He smiled down at her kindly as they began to walk along the sidewalk that led further into the downtown area. "It is not far from here," he added as she furrowed her brow.

They walked in silence for a time, Loki's hand brushing hers on occasion as they walked. The tingle of familiarity that shot through Grace did not go unnoticed. Those hands…

They made it to a small, cozy café just off the main road, only a few people milling in and out as it was not yet lunch hour. Loki found a small, secluded booth and slipped in across from Grace as she stowed her purse at her feet.

He watched her for a whole two seconds before she got down to business. "What do you want?" she said quietly.

With a little sigh, Loki sat back in his seat. "Anj- Grace," he corrected himself merely for the sake of getting her to listen. "I am sorry about last night."

"Yes, you expressed that in the library," she said quietly. A waitress came up to take their order. Grace ordered a coffee before turning back to look at the man in front of her as he ordered. The way he spoke, the way he shot such a charming smile to the woman that was taking their order… The way his hands moved as he expressed what he wished, the soft lilt of an accent that he possessed, so similar to her own now that she thought about it… It was overwhelming. She knew him… and he knew her.

As quickly as it had come, the thought left her head as he began to speak with her again. "I am sorry for last night, Grace. It was out of line on my part. I believe the late hour had gone to my head." Loki cursed his lies as he spoke them, but after he had thought through a sleepless night haunted by silver eyes, he felt that he had to draw back and regain her trust.

She pursed her lips, silver eyes darting around the café before turning their full gaze back to his. "It was rather strange," she whispered. "Loki… I-" She was cut off as she pulled back and the waitress set her cup of coffee down on the table. Could she tell him about the dreams? After his words last night, she thought it would be extremely fitting for him to know what she spoke of. But they were still so raw, so exposed. Her emotions when it came to that arena were a bundle of frayed nerves. She did not think she could face voicing them aloud to another human being.

"Yes?" he said as he poured a bit of creamer into his own cup.

He cut his eyes back to look at hers and she swallowed. Such depth… but there was darkness in them as well.

She inhaled sharply before finishing. "Could you pass the sugar?" she mumbled. He looked slightly amused as he reached over and handed her the sugar shaker.

As their fingers touched again, Grace felt the extreme sense of déjà vu hit her again. His fingers.. his touch… "Thank you," she forced out on bated breath. Her reaction to his touch did not go unnoticed. "Who… who is Anja?" she asked when she had gained enough courage.

Loki took a dainty sip from his mug, setting it down precisely where it had been before he had lifted it. He cut his eyes up to hers, dark brows shrouding the green from her. "She… She was very dear to me," was all he said as he watched her take it all in. "We were very… close."

"And you think I'm her," Grace said after a moment. "Why?"

Loki had tensed considerably at that, looking at his beloved straight on. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, Grace. Not yet, anyways," that last sentence was barely a whisper as he looked out the window.

Her long-fingered hand came down gently to rest on his, the surface of the table steadying her. "Try me," was all she replied. Loki smiled softly.

"All in its time, Grace."

She looked at him for a moment more, withdrawing her hand as she went for her coffee. His hand came to retake hers, uncommonly cold for a day like today. She looked up at him, her mouth forming a small 'oh'. "Are you feeling alright?" she asked quietly.

He too had noticed the strange drop in temperature of his skin. That had not happened since he had fallen from Asgard…

"Y-Yes," he said after a moment. He withdrew from her, resting his hand in his lap as he looked down at it. This wasn't making sense…

Grace had seemed slightly taken aback at the shock of his cold skin. On the inside, her heart was reeling. Her dream from the night before came back to haunt her and she was surrounded by the feeling of cold fingers all over her. "I… I should get back," she said after a moment.

"Wait." Loki was desperate as she made to get up, placing her purse upon the table.

Her silver gaze softened. "I'll see you tomorrow? Same time? Same place?"

He pressed his lips together in a fine line, nodding his head slightly as he took her in. But when she rose, he rose and he found himself summoning payment to put on on the table and following her to the door. As they made it outside, he turned to her… before his instincts overtook him and he had pulled her into him, pressing his lips to hers in hurried passion. He had no way of knowing if she was kissing him back or not.

As quickly as their lips had touched, a flash of pain from the string on his wrist made him pull away. Grace was left standing breathless on the sidewalk, Loki trying to regain his bearings. "Forgive me," he said after a moment. "I did not mean-" He was close to tears and he wished not to cry in front of Anja.

He was looking down at his shoes as he stammered out an excuse. Grace tilted her head to the side, reaching over to cup his face in her warm hand. "Loki. Look at me." She was extremely breathless as well.

He did as he was told, finally happy to have a firm command as to what he should do. They were well out of the way of pedestrians, the two of them standing under the alcove of the café. "I am sorry for that. It was rude of me."

She laughed quietly. "Yes, it was. But it is alright." That answer… it was something Anja would have said. Chastely, she reached up on her tip-toes, pressing her lips to his gently. There was no pain in his wrist this time… She withdrew after what felt like a lifetime later, looking at him with something deep in her intelligent gaze. "What are you doing to me?" she whispered as she trailed her hand over the faint stubble that had come in on his face, bringing bother of her hands up a half-beat later to hold his gaze.

He looked down at her, obvious care in his eyes. In that moment, all that really mattered was that he was with her again. All his hate and anger for his position was quickly gone, vanished like a ghost in the wind.

"Grace…" His thumb traced her lower lip. "I could say the same about you, My Dear…"

*o*O*o*

As soon as Anja had disappeared around the corner, Loki began to walk back towards his home. He stopped short when he saw Eira standing at the corner, arms crossed over an oversized leather jacket.

"Looks like someone's been getting some sugar," she said as she walked up to him, paint smattered jeans covering her short legs. Loki let out a huff as he began to push past her. "This is where the fun begins, Loki," she said as he attempted to ignore her. Of course, he could not leave well enough alone and he turned around to look at the Valkyrie.

"What does that mean?" he said quietly, dangerously.

Eira shrugged, coming up to stand next to him. "That flash of pain you just felt when you tried to stick your tongue down her throat- don't give me that look, we all know it's true- Yeah, well, that was a warning. Don't get too comfortable with her, Loki. She's as fragile as ever, even with the memories that keep coming back to her."

Loki blinked once. "She's remembering?"

Eir nodded as she began to walk next to him. "Small snippets of dreams here and there. Last night's was particularly naughty," Eira said as she glanced at him wickedly. Loki looked back at her, clearly not amused. "But that little bit of string right there's your shock collar, my friend," Eira said as she nodded towards the dull green string.

Anger flashed in Loki's eyes.

"It'll keep you going in the right direction. Don't blow this, Princeling," she said under her breath. "I want her to be happy every bit as much as you do."

"What about my powers?" he said after a moment of deliberation. She cocked her head, looking at him sideways.

"Your powers?"

"Yes. My hand… My skin has grown cold again."

A smile had spread across Eira's face now. "As I said, here is where the real fun begins. This is the one of the last legs of your test, Loki." He had stopped walking once more as he took her in. "You have been given your abilities back." The happiness that gleaned in his eyes was short lived as the Valkyrie shook her head. "Not so fast. The more you use your abilities from here on, Loki, the more your other side will begin to show. Summoning that money for the waitress was just the beginning."

"What?" His voice was cold, emotionless.

"You'll figure it out. 'To love, pure and chaste without the temptation of power shall be your greatest lesson.'" Eir watched him as she quoted the words of the Norns. "That was your first test. Now you have your powers, but must refrain from them to regain the woman you love. If not… well… things will get rather blue around here."

It was a sick joke meant to jab at Loki's own insecurities… and it worked. He let out a snarl as he started walking again, l head down and plowing through the crowded streets.


	17. Chapter 17

It had been a week since Grace and Loki had had coffee together: a week of completely new experiences for Grace. She had met him several times, sitting with him and talking to him at the same café.

For Grace, she had never felt so right. They spoke of many things during her lunch breaks. She would often talk to him about Aric and how he was progressing. Loki seemed to take a very special interest in the boy and she always found herself divulging more than necessary about the little green eyed boy.

Today, however, Grace found herself dealing with sorting through the books in the library, knowing full well she wouldn't be seeing Loki that day. By the time her shift was nearly finished, she was back at the front desk, going through a few more bits of paper work. She glanced at her watch quickly, going back to the documents in front of her.

*o*O*o*

"Hey Grace," Eira's voice reached Grace from the park bench she was sitting on. A walking trail stretched to either side of her. Aric was still at daycare and Grace had stopped to relax before she had to deal with the little baby that looked so much like Loki. She ached to know if Loki was the father… and part of her wondered if he was right when he spoke of her being Lady Anja. Of course, those thoughts were often cast aside very quickly. Grace was no fool. There was no such thing as a place like that of her dreams.

Grace looked up, giving Eira a small smile. "Hey, Eir. How have you been? I haven't seen you in forever."

Eira shrugged, sitting down on the bench next to her friend. "I've been well, actually. The art shows have been coming along well and- besides the usual brats- the music lessons are good too." Grace smiled at that, looking down at her folded hands. Eira tilted her head to the left, looking at Grace from the corner of her eyes. "How are you holding up? Have you spoken to Jim lately?"

Grace looked down, she had not told Eira of her and Loki's lunchtime conversations. "No. I haven't. To be truthful I do not think he wishes to speak with me."

Eira pursed her lips, thinking. "Well. Do you know what you are going to do?"

Grace looked out at the park. "Eira… there's someone else." Eira nodded as the two got up and continued walking. "I… You remember Loki, yes?"

Eira seemed to stiffen a bit at that, but nodded just the same. "Yeah. Tall dark and creepy? I remember him."

Grace furrowed her brow. "We… I… Eir. I know him. Somehow… He knows me as well. And I've been having these dreams… Do you think it's possibly that I'm not who everyone keeps telling me?"

Eira shoved her hands in the pocket of her hoodie, kicking a loose bit of gravel with her toe. "I don't know, Grace," Eira said finally. The words seemed to pain the red-head, like they weren't true, but they fell form her tongue easily enough.

Grace nodded, running a hand through her long hair. "I think he's Aric's father," she blurted out.

Eira stopped short at that, but resumed her pace when Grace continued on down the trail. A runner passed them before Eira said anything. "What makes you say that?"

"I feel this attraction to him that I can't explain, Eir. When we talk… he listens. And If eel important, like what I say means something. He knows me…"

"Has he said anything about knowing you, Grace?" Eira was serious now.

"Well…" Grace looked down, a blush touching her cheeks. "He called me by a different name a few days ago on accident. I… we were… well…"

"Oh gods," Eira said swiftly. Grace's brow furrowed at the plural form of it. Hadn't she heard Loki say that just weeks before? "You haven't… you know… slept with him, have you?"

Grace's eyes went wide. "Heavens no, but we were rather… intimate. He called me Anja."

Eira's jaw tightened even more.

"Eira. I know this sounds silly, but… I think I may love-"

"You can't know that," Eira said, cutting Grace off. "Grace, leave well enough alone. I know this guy's type."

Grace pressed her lips together, looking ahead… and her gaze clouding as two figures came around the curve. Eira looked up to see Jim and another woman walking hand in hand towards the two, heading in the opposite direction.

"That bastard," Eira said under her breath as the two came closer. But a fake smile was soon on her face as the couple got closer to her and Grace. "Jim," she said politely, her tone oozing sweetness. "Seems like forever since we've seen each other."

Jim, who seemed to have every intention of plowing straight ahead without so much as a second glance at Grace and Eira, stopped stiffly as he turned to face the two. The woman who was holding hands with him smiled at Eira and Grace, tossing chin length black hair from her eyes. "Eira," he said with a nod of his head. Jim's gaze flashed to Grace's but she was looking down at her feet.

"Who's this?" Eira said as she blinked innocently at the mystery woman.

"Oh… um… this is Amelia from work," he said after a moment. "We were… walking."

The woman smiled slightly, her eyes tightening as she took in the tension.

Something strange was stirring within Grace, something she had no recollection of feeling since she had woken up, but by all means familiar to her. Why seeing Jim like this with another woman bothered her, she had no idea. Hadn't she just been fraternizing with Loki for several weeks? But, for one reason or another, it bothered her. She had been replaced… and like a dowse of cold water, a piece of the puzzle that was her memories fell into place.

Grace started walking again, leaving Eira behind in the dust as the red-head bid Jim goodbye. Tears were brimming in her eyes now and she wiped them away with the back of her hand.

"Hey," Eira said quietly, taking Grace in. "Gracie, he's an ass. Don't let him bother you."

Grace shook her head, bringing a hand to rest on her forehead. She knew who she wanted to see right now. Something deep within her had cracked open, and she feared if she did not speak with him… see him… the next thoughts that drifted through her head scared her as she thought through what she needed from Loki. Her dreams were coming back to her now… and she was in the dark room, nary a stich of clothing on her body as cold skin rubbed against her… Loki's fingers… they had been cold…

"Eira," Grace said quietly as she looked to her friend. "I think I know how to sort all this out. Can you do me a favor?"

*o*O*o*

Loki stood in front of his mirror, his blue dress shirt unbuttoned and his alabaster chest exposed as he looked at himself in horror. Where his skin had been smooth and pure as marble just days ago, he was now marred by the markings of the frost giants along his abdomen and chest. They were faint, but they were still there and it scared the living daylight out of him. The only logical explanation he could come up with was the fact that the Norns were still angered by him… and wanted to make his life as hard as possible.

With a sigh, he buttoned his shirt back up, turning away from the bathroom sink. Then the phone rang. A quick look at the caller id told him exactly who it was.

Loki was surprised to get a phone call from Grace so early in the evening. He would have expected not to hear from her at this hour given the fact that Aric was still so young and took up most of her attention when he was awake.

"Grace?" he said through the phone by way of answer. He had a gut feeling that something as wrong.

"Loki…" she said, pausing for a moment. "I need you to come over."

Her voice was shaky through the receiver and it worried him. Something was wrong…. "Absolutely," he said as he made to grab his jacket. "I'll leave right now. Are you at home? Are you alright?"

"Yes. I just… I need to know something."

*o*O*o*

The sun was setting by the time Loki made it to the small suburban home. Loki took in a deep breath as he went to knock on Grace's front door. It had gotten rather chilly again, and he could feel the spark of his powers deep in his gut. It had taken every ounce of his self-control not to simply teleport over to her house.

She answered it in nearly the same minute. He took a step back to see her eyes red and puffy. Despite that, her appearance was the same immaculate image he was used to seeing her in. Her long curls were pulled back, a simple tank top and jeans exposing her collarbone and décolleté quite nicely. But he wasn't here to admire that part of her. Not tonight.

He followed her into the dining room, and then the living room. Her hand had come to rest in his as she led him to somewhere further back in the house…

"Loki… I'm ready to know who Anja is." Her silver eyes were dull with sadness and he wanted to kiss away the tears that had no doubt fallen from her silver orbs.

Loki tilted his head to the left, taking her in. "Grace…."

"Loki. I…. Please." She took him by the hand. "I need to know what you know. I don't know if you are crazy or delusional… or if you are telling the truth. But, Loki. These past weeks have been the best of my life-at least of what I can remember. And it has all been because of you." Yes. She was sure of that. Even with her breakup with Jim. Even with Eira's warnings… she knew she needed this man.

"Where is Aric?" he asked calmly as he looked around, trying to figure out what she was doing. He followed Anja- no, Grace- into one of the back rooms… and was startled to find a bedroom. He felt his heart pick up in pace as he watched her move towards the window, pushing aside the shades and looking out into the night.

Grace turned to look him in the eye. "Eira has him for the night," she replied quietly.

Loki rubbed his chin with his hand as he look around. The room was simple, and it reflected her rooms in Asgard to an almost unnerving degree. Loki felt homesickness hit him and it surprised him greatly.

Her back was still to him and he shifted awkwardly from foot to foot as he took in his surroundings. Perhaps he should wait in the other room? She was so fragile… Her voice stopped him when he turned to leave.

"Wait." She turned around to look at him, silver eyes filled with something he had not seen since they had been in Asgard: need. "Loki, I… I hardly know you."

Loki nodded in understanding as he took a step backwards towards the door. "I understand."

Grace let out a laugh, but something shiny was in the corner of her left eye. He felt his heart break into a million pieces when he realized it was a tear. "But… I feel like that is something that needs to be corrected." She walked right up to him, hesitantly taking his face between her warm hands. "You shall probably laugh at me, but… when I'm with you, the gaps in my memory do not seem so large. I feel calm and, for the first time that I can remember, I feel at peace." She moved her hands to rest at his neck, coming down to his shoulders. Loki inhaled slowly as he watched her, his hands resting at his sides, but twitching to wrap around her waist.

"An- Grace." His heart was soaring, and if it hadn't been for the string around his wrist that kept him from touching her intimately without her initiating it, he would have kissed her in a heartbeat. Instead, he closed his eyes as she brought her forehead to rest against his. Gods if this was not enough to get her to remember him he did not know what was. But this was not the time for them to reunite- not that way. He could feel that in his gut. It took every ounce of his will to pull away from her and hurt and rejection filled her eyes. He almost fell over to see her looking so forlorn. "It is not that I don't want you, Grace," he said evenly, gently as he pulled from her grasp. "My Love, we have time. I do not want you to feel as though you must rush this." How had he grown to be so… mature about this matter? In Asgard he would have bedded her at the drop of a hat. Gods, he had bedded countless palace maids before he had met her… Why now did he choose to be chivalrous? This was what he wanted, wasn't it?

No. He wanted something deeper.

Grace's fingers moved to his shirt, hesitant as she clung to him. "I wish you knew how empty I feel," she muttered. "Without any memories of who I am, where I came from…" Her hands were still on him and he caught the familiar scent of lavender and warmth that always accompanied Anja. It was a scent that would never fail to arouse him. "I think you are the key."

He looked back at her, emerald eyes blazing with anticipation. What did she want from him?

* * *

**Goodness. I seem to be the queen of cliffhangers lately. Haha but hopefully this was a good enough update after such a long wait on this story. School sucks, that is my only explanation. :/ **

**What will they dooooo? ;) **

**Review? **

**~Sirius **


	18. Chapter 18

_**Okay guys, I am so sorry it took me forever to update this. Like I said, I started really hating it. I have deleted ch 18-20 and have been reworking them to get them where I want them to be. They will be shorter ( a thousand words or so) for the next few updates simply because I have really changed the story. Just bear with me guys, please!**_

* * *

Loki fought to retain his composure as Grace clung to him, knowing full well that something wasn't right. Then it hit him, the faintest smell of alcohol mixing with the initial bit of lavender. He pulled away completely from her at that, shaking his head.

"You've been drinking," he said quietly.

Grace looked back at him wide-eyed, shaking her head. "Loki… I only had a drink or two. I needed some way to calm down and Eira had Aric and..."

He closed his eyes as she leaned into him. She watched him as she slipped her hands back behind his neck, pressing her breasts against his chest. He let out a gasp as his own arousal became all too evident… and then her lips were covering his, slightly sloppy but fervent and just as passionate as he remembered.

Perhaps that was why it was far too hard to pull away, the familiarity of her kiss made him feel as if he were home again, as if they were in his chambers after a day of stress-filled duties and this was their way of coping. It would be far too easy to simply fall into bed with her, to forget all of his problems and lose them in her body.

No. She deserved more than that. Tonight she seemed to be upset. He didn't know what had set her on edge, but simple sex was not something she needed. She would probably regret it in the morning… and if she regretted it, he certainly would. For her, this would be the first time she remembered making love with him. He would not resort to the methods of desperation to get her into bed. And, of course, there was the matter of his Johtun form…

As a groan built in his chest, he pulled away from her. His long hands came up to grab her by the wrists, letting them fall down in front of them.

"I will not take advantage of you," he said under his breath, shaking his head. He kept repeating that sentence in his head like a mantra as she walked back up to stand in front of him.

Grace let out a soft chuckle, looking down to take his hand. She certainly seemed to be in control of her actions…

"You need to go to bed," he whispered.

"Please, Loki," she whispered. "Don't… Don't leave me."

His brow tilted upward at that and for a brief moment he could have sworn the woman in front of him was the same nineteen year old girl from Asgard's gardens.

"I won't take advantage of you," he said aloud once more.

Grace nodded, biting her lower lip. "Will you not stay with me for the night at least?" she asked quietly. She staggered a bit as he reached a hand out to catch her. A tear was running down her face at that, and he wiped it away as he walked towards the bed with her. "No. I don't want to. Not without you-"

"I will stay however long you need me to," he whispered as he held the covers up for her to slip into. The feeling in his pants was unbearable at this point, and he let out a shudder as she curled up under the sheets. She blinked once, looking up at him. He cursed himself as the image of himself pinning her down right there and ravishing her senseless filled his thoughts. He closed his eyes, taking in another deep breath before he spoke again. "I'll be in the living room, alright?" he whispered, leaning over to kiss her forehead. "You sleep."

Her brow furrowed at that as she looked up to him. "You won't stay with me in here?"

He closed his eyes, inhaling before shaking his head. "No." He honestly feared what may transpire if he stayed with her in such an intimate way. He needed space. He needed a way to clear his head. He was hot and bothered and at that point a cold shower was something he was sorely in need of.

But he fought the urge to roll his eyes at himself as she looked back at him desperately. The alcohol definitely had had an effect on her- she had never been this needy in Asgard or during the time he had known her here. He hated that some primal part of him adored the fact that she was so dependent on him. It made him that much more in need of her.

Eventually, he slipped down into the sheet anyways, and her sweet scent hit him in a wave as she rested her head on his shoulder tentatively. It was painfully obvious that he was still aroused, and he tried his best to keep her from noticing it as well.

"What's been bothering you?" he asked tentatively.

She took in a shaky breath at that, shrugging. "Many things, I suppose," she whispered. "All the little things build up and then before you know it all it takes is one little thing to throw you off completely." She yawned at that, finally succumbing to the wine she had been drinking. Loki was finally able to detect that with his heightened senses at least, and it made him feel a bit better to know she hadn't turned to the hard liquor.

"Sleep, Little Anja," he whispered in her ear as she drifted off on his shoulder. It wasn't for another moment before he slipped out from under her, setting a very small sleeping spell over her so she would stay asleep.

* * *

_**Yes, I know this was short, but I'm trying to get back into the swing of writing for this story. I hadn't been able to really think about it like I wanted to with school, and then when I went back to read what I had to continue it, I found myself hating it. Like, really really hating it. **_

_**Next chapter will be longer. They will be talking a lot more. :D And no. Her memories are not back anymore. **_

_**-Sirius **_


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